Continued Existence
by LilGenie
Summary: Sent to find a fellow auror member and validate whether Deatheater sightings in America were true or not, Harry wasn't expecting the Potter luck of getting into trouble to kick in. Getting entangled in the Winchesters' lives, another destiny awaits. Slash
1. 00

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Supernatural, just borrowing the characters for a little entertainment. =P

Prologue

At last.

At long last, he had finally beaten the Potter brat and he could not withhold his triumphant cackling as he turned his back on the fallen form of the Boy-Who-Lived to face the horrified looks of the light wizards that dared oppose him and his followers.

"Harry Potter is no more!" He exclaimed, basking in his moment of victory. The one that could ever hope to possibly defeat him was dead by his feet and they all knew it by the looks on their defeated faces.

His feeling of success didn't last long though.

"Oh, I wouldn't be quite sure about that, Tom." A voice behind him spoke.

He whirled around in alarm, and his snake-like features twisted from an expression of triumph to an expression of shock and pain when he found himself impaled by Gryffindor's sword. He stared into the bright green eyes of his longtime enemy, his hands grasping at the blade protruding from his stomach in an attempt to prevent it from further impaling him.

"H-how?" He uttered. The Potter boy had the audacity to smirk up at him and stepped in closer to his body, twisting the sword.

"You've made a mistake, Tom." He taunted him. "If you were going to kill me, you might've wanted to remove the part of the soul you've placed in me first."

His red eyes reflected his surprise at the information and the brat dare utter a laugh. Without much of a warning, the boy yanked the sword from his body before delivering a magic enhanced kick that sent him flying a couple of feet away. He grunted in pain when the Gryffindor sword was once again impaled within his body, pinning him to the floor. He raised his wand in an attempt to send a curse towards the boy only to have it kicked out of his hand, sending his wand spinning away into the shadows.

Pain was coursing through his body and for once in his life, Lord Voldemort might be feeling fear for his life. His horucruxes were gone; the Potter brat and the other two twerps had managed to find and destroy them all, making him mortal once more. His eyes flickered to his followers and saw that the light wizards were actively restraining and pushing back the dark wizards to prevent them from coming to his aid.

It came to him then, he was going to die.

Looking into the eyes of his enemy, he began to laugh. It was just all too funny. The motion of his stomach muscles was pushing out the blood from his body more rapidly from all his laughing.

"You may have defeated me, Potter, but you'll find that there are worse things out there than me and when they get their hands on you, I'll be one of the first beings that'll give you a warm welcome in hell." He coughed then, wiping the blood that dribbled from his mouth with the back of his hand.

The brat gave a humorless laugh.

"Well, until then, have fun on the rack with the thought that I was the one who sent you there."

Without another moment, the Potter boy lifted up his wand and shot off the killing curse at him. He watched the bright green curse fly towards him and within seconds, he was struck. With his red eyes slowly fading into a dull sheen, he had only one thought swirling around his mind.

_It is far from over between us, Potter. _


	2. 01

Part I: Continued Existence

Chapter One

**5 Years Later…**

"Potter! What in blazes do you think you are doing on my couch?" The one called Severus Snape bellowed, gliding into his quarters with his robes billowing around him. His raised voice along with the slam of the portrait door startled a snoozing Harry Potter awake.

"Sleeping." He responded with a yawn, stretching his arms above his head and sitting up from said couch. He rubbed the crusts away from his eyes and peered at the irate Deputy Headmaster of Hogwarts with tired green eyes. "Was, anyway."

"How'd you get in?"

"You gave me the password, don't you remember?" Harry said, batting his long lashes demurely at Severus.

"No, I did NOT!" Severus denied vehemently, glaring down at the young man who was responsible for riding the world of an evil madman. Harry gave him a small smirk.

"You're right." He agreed generously. "I lied. Hogwarts likes me, so when I asked, she let me in. Your glares don't work on me anymore, by the way. You should save it for the first year students."

"Impertinent brat." Was the soft reply before Severus's glare eased from his face. Harry smiled at the tender tone of his once most hated professor. "Leave it to you to do the impossible and befriend the castle in such a way for it to do your bidding."

"She's a doll." Harry said, lying back down on the couch. He turned green eyes that were no longer hindered by the need of glasses to observe Severus summon a house elf to send up some tea.

His relationship with the Professor, now Deputy Headmaster, was pretty rocky in the beginning. Both holding a grudge from the past, Severus of his father and he of the way he was treated in school but after the war, he found that when he wanted to escape from reality for a bit, Severus offered it in ways of sharp barbs and acidic tongues but a comfy couch or even desk, for that matter, made it worth it.

The animosity between the two had decreased over the years when Harry had taken it upon himself to try and end the bad blood between them. The first few meetings, he had seriously believed that Severus would find some way to poison him and dump his body off somewhere in the Forbidden Forest but being a stubborn Gryffindor that he was, he persisted and he had somewhat soothed the elder man's ruffled fur.

Many were surprised that the two men were now on companionable terms and with the death of Hermione and Ron, Harry was surprised himself that he had found comfort in Severus's presence as well as a confidant.

"What are you doing here, Potter?" Was the wayward question to what was going on with his life. It amused him that he was beginning to understand some of the quirks of his ex-Professor, not to mention how many lumps of sugar that the man required for his tea.

"Kingsley's sending me to America for an assignment." Harry answered, watching pitch black eyes flicker with concern for a second before it was hidden from prying eyes. "Savage hasn't checked in with Kingsley in a while and they want me to see if I can track him down."

He didn't need to mention that Savage may be already dead due to the many reasons and causes in which can occur over there. America held many oddities; from the Salem Witch Trials that didn't really burn any real witches to how the magical creatures there were out of touch with the magical side of themselves. Not to mention the threat of running into a hunter who can quickly end a wizard's or witch's life if they weren't careful.

For the past five years now, there had been strange reports on the on goings in America and how dark energy and magic seem to hover just above the country as if in waiting for something big to happen. Normally the Wizarding World would not invest much time with what's going on over there but recent news has reported that Deatheaters have been spotted and with them involved, one knew that the ending result would be no good if no one put a stop to it.

"And how long exactly will I get to enjoy my time without your presence?"

"Gee, don't miss me too much, will you?" Harry said drily, staring up at the ceiling as if it held something truly fascinating. And that in itself may actually be true due to the fact of how much magic Hogwarts was imbrued with. "Hmm… Starting tomorrow, I'd say about a month. More if I find any shred of truth behind the Deatheater business."

Glancing at the time, Harry stood up; his actual height reaching only about five foot three. To his utter dismay, the Dursleys' mistreatment of him had severely stunted his growth and even with nutrient potions and the likes, he had grown only a foot before stopping altogether. Emerald-colored eyes with long black lashes peered from a heart-shaped face that still sported messy black hair that looked like a bird's nest. He possessed full pink lips with a small nose and a slim build that had made many enemies believe that he was of no threat until he took them down without much of an effort on his part.

"Well, I gotta go now. Have to pack up the few provisions that I'll need before I head out." He said, giving Severus a bright smile. "See you when I get back."

Harry was almost by the entrance when Severus spoke up.

"Pot-Harry, as much as it brings me joy that you'll be gone for a while, do contact me if you need anything." He said, struggling with the words a bit. "Be careful out there. With your luck, your streak of running into danger without thinking will get your killed."

Hearing those words, Harry's face broke out into a huge smile before he bounded over to the still sitting Severus and plopped into the unsuspecting man's lap. He threw his arms around his ex-professor, still shocking the man of his actions even though he's done it several times in the past couple of years, and gave him a big kiss on the cheek.

"Aww, Severus! I didn't know you cared! I love you, too." He said and hopped off quickly before jogging towards the entrance of the room. Recovering from the latest shock of his life, a reddish hue can be seen blooming across Severus's sallow cheeks as he shot off a curse at the laughing Harry who, to his much frustration, dodged it with ease.

"I don't! You can die in America for all I care!" He managed to shout at Harry before the portrait swung shut. Still grinning, the twenty-two year old made his way down the hall and towards the exit before apparating home.

Still chuckling over Severus's reaction, he let out a gasp when he felt someone push him against the wall and captured his lips with their own when he stepped into his home. Mischievous blue eyes peered into his own and when he realized who it was, he found himself whimpering into his captor's kiss.

His hands slid under the shirt of the man before him and mapped out the planes of abs and muscles that rippled from their movements. He felt the other finger the edge of the back of his shirt and he attempted to push deeper into the embrace, raising himself onto his toes to get closer. After a few minutes, the two broke apart to gather much needed air into their lungs.

"Charlie, what do I owe the pleasure of you being here?" Harry purred, raising the elder man's shirt up teasingly.

Charlie chuckled, bending down to pepper kisses along his neck. He moaned quietly, tilting his head to the side to allow him to have more access.

"The dragons have gone into hibernation so I thought I'd come by to see if you could keep me company."

"Hmm… I gotta pack though." Harry pointed out but he made no effort to extract himself from the warm embrace. He pulled at the other's black shirt, mentally cheering when the other got the message and tugged the shirt off. He rewarded the other by lapping at his chest, moving his hand lower to the other's pants.

"Where are you going?" Charlie asked, moaning slightly from Harry's actions. He allowed the young man to maneuver them into the bedroom before he took the other's shirt off and lowered him on to the bed.

"Right now? I'm thinking of a very pleasurable place." Harry said breathily. He tugged at the other's pants, hoping that he'll get the message. "Would you like to join me?"

Charlie gave a gruff chuckle before swooping down for another passionate kiss.

"I thought you'd never ask."

It was several hours later that found Charlie lazing on Harry's bed while Harry himself was packing up the essentials that he'll be needing to take to America with him. His body hummed pleasantly from his recent activities and he felt refreshed from the shower he and Charlie had shared.

The two had begun their casual relationship three years after the war. It had happened on Harry's twentieth birthday. Charlie had spent the evening flirting with the easily embarrassed birthday boy while George was in the background entertaining the party guests with his new inventions from his joke shop; he was determined to continue to dream that he and his deceased twin brother had shared with the help of Ginny and Harry whenever the latter could.

The pair had gotten a little overly drunk and had taken it further than what both of them had anticipated for the night but the ending result of their actions was more than satisfactory. They weren't exactly _in_ love with each other but they mashed well and by the end of the next day after Harry's birthday, they had drawn up an arrangement.

They were allowed to date other people and even have sexual intercourse with others but when or if they ever get into a serious relationship, their arrangement would end. Simple as that. Harry refused to be the "other woman" and if he ever found himself in a serious relationship, he'd want to give his heart, body, and soul solely to the other person.

"Are you sure you have to be the one who goes?" Charlie questioned, concern clearly shining from his eyes. "There are plenty of other capable aurors that Kingsley can send in your place."

"It'll be fine, Charlie. I can take care of myself."

He tossed some extra pair of clothing into his bag and stood in the middle of the room pondering what else that he needed to pack. Various potions were gathered and placed into the bag after he had casted an unbreakable spell on the glass as well as some grooming care items.

"It's America, Harry. Things tend to work differently over there." Charlie stood up and went to stand behind Harry, wrapping his arms around the slim figure. "There are rumors that demon activity over there is on a grand scale and being you, you are bound to find trouble."

Harry swatted at Charlie's arms playfully, sticking his tongue out at the man.

"You're jinxing me!" He exclaimed, laughing. "I'll have you know, I don't go looking for trouble! It's usually trouble tends to come to me in the most unpredictable ways."

Rising up to his toes, he kissed the second eldest Weasley on the bottom of his chin and leaned back against the toned muscular chest. His face twisted slightly into a concerned expression.

"Savage's been MIA for three weeks now and we need to find out what happened to him." He smiled slightly as the grip on his waist tightened slightly before it eased. "He isn't the kind of abandon his duty if he could help it and Kingsley doesn't want to risk sending off more aurors when he knows that I'll be able to get the job done."

"Hmm… but I worry about you and with you gone, who will keep me company?"

"Oh, I'm sure you'll be able to find someone. From what you say, your co-worker seems to be more than willing." He laughed when he saw Charlie wrinkle his nose at the suggestion.

"Don't even mention that. The bloke's taken to stalking me while I work, almost got his head toasted off."

"It couldn't be that bad." Harry said, chuckling at the funny but quite deadly image his mind conjured up. His laughter increased when Charlie kissed the side of his neck, slowly going downwards. He allowed himself to be led once again to his bed.

"Oh, it was worse. I'm starting to get hungry." The dragon keeper gave him a rather wolfish grin as he stared down at his tempting and delicious morsel. "Let me eat you up."

Harry giggled.

"Why, grandma. What big teeth you have."

Wrapping his legs around the man on top of him, Harry more than willingly let himself be eaten and then some in order to fulfill his urges for the next month that he'll be on the assignment. Charlie grinned at him in response, getting the muggle reference.

"The better to eat you with, my dear."

It would be another several hours later that the one known as Harry Potter, a.k.a. The Boy-Who-Destroyed-the-Dark-Lord, reported in to his commanding officer to get all the facts about his assignment. It was simply protocol and with words of well wishes for safe traveling and his general well-being, he was handed a portkey and was unknowingly whisked away to a land that held his future.

...

**Somewhere in America**

Sam Winchester woke up with a start from a dream that he had, startling his brother awake from the bed next to his.

"Sam? Sammy?" Dean called out in alarm, his hand wrapped around the handle of his silver dagger that he always kept under his pillow. When he realized that they weren't in any immediate danger, he relaxed his grip on his dagger and made his way over to his younger brother. "What's wrong?"

"I-it's nothing." Sam answered, running his hand through his hair. "Sorry. Go back to sleep, Dean. It was just a dream."

Dean wasn't entirely convinced but seeing that Sam wasn't in distress like the other times that he'd been startled awake from his sleep, he decided to let it go.

"If you're sure, princess." He said, going towards the playful approach as he tended to do. He went flop back onto his own bed, making himself comfortable. "Gotta tell you, Sammy. If you're having wet dreams over there, might wanna tell me so I can get some ear plugs for the night."

Sam tossed his pillow at Dean's head in retaliation.

"Jerk!"

"Bitch." The elder Winchester retorted with a gruff chuckle. He rolled over to his side and fell back asleep within minutes. The hunt had taken a toll on him when their target seemed to have found great amusement in tossing him around like a ragdoll.

Damned spirits.

When Sam was sure that Dean was fast asleep, he leaned back against the headboard and tried to wrap his mind around the odd dream that he had. The surrounding was hazy at best and he could barely make out a young boy with bright emerald green eyes who he assumed was still in his teens battling against a snake-like man monster; both holding what appeared to be a stick in their hands. Bright lights seemed to fly from the ends of the sticks when they uttered words that made no sense to him but had actually did quite an amount of damage wherever it struck.

He had worried for the frail-looking teen who seemed to be at the heart of it all and he couldn't wrap his mind around the fact of why anyone would allow anyone so young to enter what seemed to be a war in the first place.

He had seen through the fog-like area that surrounded the area and watched with worry from a spectator's view of the boy who seemed to have died and come back to life only to stab his enemy with a sword that appeared out of thin air into his hand. He watched it all as if it were a movie, which in a way was true since it was a dream, and had seen how the young teen stared down at the dead corpse of his enemy with conflicting eyes before the scene changed and saw how many people celebrate the death of the snake-like monster as well as mourn for the people they had lost in the war.

The boy was declared a hero and was revered greatly but he refused to take all the credit. He tried to reason with the people that it wasn't he alone that won the war but of all the people that had taken part in the war along with the braved ones that had fallen. Sam saw how the young teen dealt with his sorrows and pain over the lost of his loved ones and forced himself to continue living on with his life. He had taken part in reviving the world he lived in from the suffering it had to endure from the hands of a tyrant and once again changed it to a place where people can once again walk the streets without fear and fill the air with laughter and conversation.

After some moments lost in thought, he realized that the bright lights were actually a form of magic and though he believed that it was just his overactive imagination at work, Sam, on some level, was analyzing the people in it as if they were real. His first instinct was to label them as witches who sold their souls for their powers but his gut was telling him that these people were quite different from the ones that he and Dean had run into during some of their previous hunts.

And most important of all, he could feel the purity and goodness that poured from the boy with the green eyes. He felt ridiculous then that he was spending so much time pondering over a dream and so simply brushed it aside. His instincts were telling him that there were no threats and he trusted his instincts implicitly. A hunter would simply be dead if he couldn't trust his own instincts.

And with that thought, he slid back down onto his bed in hopes of getting some more sleep before the morning came upon them. They had a long drive ahead of them tomorrow towards another hunt that had caught Dean's eye and he'd just hope that, for once in their life, the hunt wouldn't turn out to be complicated than it needed to be. But then again, with Dean and his luck, they were bound to run into some trouble.

What he didn't know was Trouble had picked up another one of its victim's trail that had landed directly in its path. It rubbed its nonexistent hands together in glee while a huge mischievous grin broke out onto its face. It was going to have so much fun with its three most favorite victims in the whole wide world; especially now that they were all on the same continent.


	3. 02

Hi! I'd just like to say thank you for those who reviewed and have added my story to their alert/favorite list. It's nice to know there are people out there interested. =]

Chapter Two

Harry landed in a crumbled heap when the portkey delivered him to his proper destination. He groaned, stumbling to his feet and attempting to smooth out his windswept hair with annoyed gestures. He would think that after five years of working as an auror, he'd gain enough experience to land on his two feet when traveling by portkey but sadly, the concept still seemed to elude him to this very day.

Taking a look around his surroundings, he found himself in a clearing of some sorts completely enclosed by trees. According to what Kingsley had informed him, he was in the same area that Savage had last been and he sincerely hoped that the trail hadn't gone cold yet.

Casting a shrinking charm onto the portkey, Harry stuffed it into his bag and headed out through the trees to emerge out into the main road. He was near a town and recalling Kingsley's words, he began to search out a bar with a logo of an eagle in the front. Apparently, their informant was a former Ravenclaw.

The sun was setting by the time Harry found the correct bar. Casting a slight charm to obscure his features to draw less attention to himself, he entered the establishment to find himself encased in a world of alcohol, drunks, gamblers, and smoke. Fighting back a small grimace when a drunkard nearly tumbled on top of his small form, he weaved his way through the room towards where the bartender was currently handing out drinks with great precision.

"Aren't you a little too young to be in a bar, sonny?" The bartender asked, giving him a dubious glance when he managed to snag a stool right in front of the busy man.

Harry gave him a small smile, used to people mistaken him for being younger than he actually was due to either his appearance or height.

"I'm old enough." He assured, leaning against the counter towards the man. "But I'm not here for a drink. I'm here looking for Rook, do you happen to know where I can find him?"

"You're looking right at him." The bartender, now known as Rook, said. "What can I do for you?"

He swept his eyes around the room for any potential threats while he casually lounged in his seat. One can never be too careful.

Constant vigilance, Moody's voice echoed through his mind.

"Nothing much, I heard of your skills in poker and I was hoping that you'll be interested in playing a game with me." Harry said, procuring a pack of cards from his pocket. The surface of the cover cards painted with the colors with blue and bronze with an eagle on it. "With your agreement, the jacks will be wild."

To Rook's credit, he didn't let on that he caught onto Harry's hidden message.

"You think you can win against me, boy?" Rook chuckled, motioning for one of his staff members to take over his spot. He untied his apron and tossed it into the backroom before motioning Harry to follow him. "No one who has challenged me has ever won a hand against me."

Harry gave him a cheeky grin and slid fluidly from his stool.

"I'm known for doing the impossible."

"We'll have to see about that."

With Rook leading the way, they ended up at a table near one of the corners of the bar. It was a bit far from the rest of the patrons but not enough where it'd draw attention to them. After all, there were plenty of other people who looked by far shadier than a bar owner and a customer who were playing poker.

Once Harry was seated, he canceled the spell obscuring his features when he was sure that the shadows would prevent the patrons in the bar to have a clear distinct view of him. Rook gave a low whistle when he saw who was sitting across from him.

"Well, I'll be damned. If it isn't Harry Potter himself." He said, scratching his balding head while giving him a look of what could only be described as respect and reverence. "It's an honor to meet you, son."

Harry gave him an embarrassed smile. He didn't think he'd ever get used to people's reactions to him.

"It's nice to meet you, too, sir." He answered a bit awkwardly before professionalism kicked in and he brushed his embarrassment aside. He started shuffling the blue and bronze cards with practiced ease. "But pleasantries aside, let's get on with the game. Jacks are wild."

"And what wild cards they tend to be." Rook stated, getting down to business. He folded his hands in front of him after they both had placed their bets on the table.

"How often do jacks appear in a game, do you think?" He asked, starting to deal out the cards for himself and Rook to start the game.

"Not as often as he should've in the last three games I've played." Was the answer. "The last I've seen of him was when he had appeared in the nick of time to save a young queen from being beaten from a four of a kind."

At that news, Harry felt a small sense of dread beginning to grow within his stomach. There was a high possibility that the man was dead and with the modified version of what Hermione had successfully created during their time searching for the horucruxes, all aurors had in their possession an item that prevented anyone from being able to trace them and unfortunately for them now, Savage was of no exception.

Hermione was a great witch and he mourned for his lost friends every day but he tried to go on with his life as best as he can due to the promise he had made them.

He shook himself mentally from his grief and refocused himself on the present and at the problem at hand.

Three weeks ago. What could've prevented a man with years of experience in the auror business from doing the very job he was dedicated to? What exactly did Savage save the young girl from? And where could he find this girl? With more questions now more than answers, he absentmindedly tossed down two of his cards to pick up two new ones and added another bill to the center of the table.

"I'm sure he was greatly appreciated in that time of need."

Rook nodded, throwing down three of his own cards and followed Harry's lead in adding more money into the pile.

"Should've seen it. Rosie nearly had a heart attack after I told her how much I wagered on that hand." He began tapping his finger against the top of the table, an unconscious gesture on his part. "Nearly had to take her to Offspring's Hospital."

"It's a relief that she's okay." Harry said with a smile, filing away the hospital and the girl's name to check out later. Hopefully the search would be fruitful.

They revealed their cards, and Rook's thin lips broke into a grin. His winning streak was still at large. He collected the money from the pile before throwing back a couple of bills for the next round and watched Harry copy the action before dealing out two fresh new piles of cards.

"In the opinion of a resident, how's the town?" Harry asked, looking over his cards with what he hoped was an expressionless face. People have always told him that his face, especially his eyes, were far too expressive for his own good. "I was thinking of staying a few days to see the sights."

"There ain't much to see here, I'm afraid. There was some trouble a while ago but everything's gone back to being normal again. Probably some punks trying to mess with the locals."

Harry gave him a questioning look and he obliged him by answering the unasked question.

"Since you're new here, you probably haven't heard," Rook began, throwing a card down and doubled the money on the table. "About a month ago, there were rumors that there was a monster with a bright white face lurking around in the woods spiriting away unsuspecting wanderers."

Harry froze slightly at that bit of information, his mind filled with only one word.

Deatheater.

In a blink of an eye, the tension that had flowed through his body was gone and he was once again calm and collected. He threw down two of his cards and replaced them with two others, adding the same amount of money that the bartender had added to the table.

"Was there any truths behind the rumor?" He asked in an uncaring manner.

"I don't know about that but the so-called sightings ended about three weeks ago."

Harry was really beginning to hate the three words, 'three weeks ago.' All the trouble seemed to happen three weeks ago. He mentally frowned and thought childishly, what was so special about three weeks ago anyway?

"Well, I guess I came at the right time." He responded with force cheer. "What do you have?" He asked, motioning towards the other's hand.

"Royal flush." Rook replied with a winning smile. "Another win for me, boy." He attempted to reach for the pile of money before Harry's small hands stopped him in his tracks.

"Not quite, old man." He said teasingly, laying his cards flat on the table. "Five of a kind. Seems like I found a wild jack."

As he will in reality, he promised himself.

Rook cursed rather loudly, drawing a few curious looks from the patrons nearby. Harry collected his winnings and placed them in his pocket with a grin.

"My friends tell me that beating the impossible seems to be a habit of mine." He informed the bartender who seemed to be sulking now that his winning streak has been broken. "As much fun as it was playing with you, I gotta go find myself a place to stay."

Rook sighed loudly and stood up as well.

"It's just my luck to play against such a man. Just as well, I got a bar and some customers to tend to." He patted Harry on the head fondly. "Come back to this bar anytime. Drinks will be on me."

"I'll be sure to take you on that." Harry said, holding out his hand. "It was nice meeting you, sir."

"The name's Rook." The bartender corrected, taking a hold of his hand in a firm handshake. "I hope to be seeing you again someday."

"With the chance to beat the unbeatable man, of course." He teased. "See you."

With that, Harry began to make his way out of the bar but not before accidentally bumping into what felt like a giant road block. He stumbled back slightly from the impact and probably would've fallen except the giant road block had reached out and saved him from having an intimate greeting with the floor.

"Whoa, sorry about that." The giant road block said, letting go only after it was sure that Harry was steady on his feet.

"No, it's okay." He assured it, finally looking up and was a bit shocked of what he saw. He couldn't help the thought of how hot the guy was from running through his mind. What Harry had pictured as a road block was actually a young man in his twenties with shaggy light brown hair. He towered over Harry's lithe frame and he could tell that under the jacket that the man was wearing were toned and fit muscles. He wouldn't mind running his hands over them.

'No! Bad Harry. Now's not the time to be thinking of such things.' He mentally scolded himself, reigning in Lusty Harry. Lusty Harry pouted and went into a corner to sulk about the unfairness of it all. There was a hot guy in front of him and he wasn't allowed to play with him.

A gasp escaped the other man's lips, interrupting Harry's thoughts and he tilted his head slightly from confusion.

"D-do I know you?" The man asked and Harry frowned, mentally kicking himself when he realized he didn't reapply his obscuring charm.

"No, I don't think so." He answered carefully. Hot or not, the guy could actually be a psycho and precautions had to be set. Lusty Harry stopped sulking and popped out of existence. "Why?"

Normally, he didn't apply obscuring charms anyway but he thought it would be a good idea since he was in unfamiliar territory. Too late for that, though.

"You look really familiar." Was the answer, and Harry couldn't help the slight bit of paranoia running through him. He credited that to the training that Moody had all but pounded into him in his earlier years. "My name's Sam. Sam Winchester."

"Harry Potter." He answered, giving the man a small smile in which was returned. He had thought about giving a false name but ever since the final battle, his appearance was pretty well known amongst anyone with any access to the wizarding newspaper, so there wasn't much of a point.

Besides, he was proud of the name his parents had given him and it felt disrespectful to them if he tried to deny it. Severus had pointed out many times how much of an imbecile he was for refusing to come up with a false alias to go by and he had joked with the older man that he could always go by the name 'Undesirable Number One.'

He was promptly hit in the head for the comment.

"Hey, do you want-," Sam's question was cut off then when a hostile shout was heard from where the pool tables were and they both turned towards the area to see what was going on.

From what Harry could see, a rather burly man had thrown down his pool stick and was cursing at the other man who wore a cock-eyed smile who was holding his hands up in mock surrender.

He was a handsome man and from his attitude, one can infer that he was a bit cocky and what people would call a "lady's man." He was tall without a doubt, but not taller than Sam the Road Block as Harry had mentally dubbed him. He'd probably tower over Harry as well, making him pout slightly.

The burly man took a swing at Handsome who in turned dodged the punch before throwing one of his own. Handsome seemed to be able to handle himself before a couple of more men, probably friends of the burly one, decided to join the brawl.

"Could you just, uh, wait here for a moment, Harry?" Sam asked. "I gotta go get my brother."

Harry was really glad that it was Handsome that was his brother and not the burly one. Watching the two brothers in action, it was clear that they were well trained in the art of fighting and defending themselves. Their moves were fluid and biting his lip in uncertainty, the thought of the two being hunters crossed his mind.

It was almost unbelievable and improbable that out of all places that Harry had to come to, there happened to be hunters in the area. He paused at the thought before mentally hanging his head down. It was indeed possible that there would be hunters in the area where he was and he had run into one literally.

The great Harry Potter luck had kicked in. Or maybe it was Trouble at work once again.

No matter what was responsible for the situation, Harry thought it was best to leave now and with one last look at the two brothers and the bartender who was trying to stop the brawl, he left the bar and went in search for a motel to stay for the night. Hopefully they were just here for the night and they'll be on their way tomorrow. He wasn't concerned about Rook not being able to handle the situation, knowing that the man used to be an auror himself and a tough one at that.

That's why he made a great undercover informant.

It was nearing eleven o' clock when Harry managed to rent a room for the night, and hopped in the shower. Once he was done, he collapsed on the bed; quickly drawn into the world of dreams.

…

**Over at the Winchesters**

"I'm telling you, Dean." Sam insisted while they were making their way back to their motel room. "It was the same kid that was in my dreams."

"Are you trying to tell me something, Sam?" Dean chuckled from the driver's seat. "Maybe little Sammy doesn't play for the opposite team as much as he's led others to believe."

"Funny," Sam said, giving Dean a look. "A lot of people can say the same thing about you."

Dean scowled at Sam, while the other gave him a smirk.

"I'm laughing on the inside." He said sarcastically. "And I thought you only had visions pertaining to Yellow-Eyes."

"I don't know, man. I just- I don't know why I had a vision or whatever about him but he's important."

Dean sighed.

"Why are you so sure that that kid's the one from your dreams anyway?"

"His eyes." Sam admitted with a rather embarrassed look on his face. Dean snorted at the answer.

"And what else in your wet dream made you so interested in him?"

Sam chose to ignore the jab thrown at him and instead responded with, "I think he's a witch."

"What?" Dean exclaimed in surprised, nearly jerking his beloved car off the road at the admission. "So what, do you think it's true?"

"I don't know but it's not like we can walk up to him and ask." Sam said, peeling himself off the side of the door he was thrown into by Dean's erratic driving.

"Why not?" The elder Winchester demanded hotly. "If he sold his soul for magic, we need to stop him before he ganks someone with his mumbo jumbo."

"That's the thing, Dean." Sam began. "I don't think he's one of the bad guys. From what I saw, he's actually a hero."

"And how do you know it wasn't all a trick to make you think he's one of the good guys?" Dean questioned, stuck in the mentality that everything was either black or white. There was no inbetween when it came to the supernatural. "He could be working for Yellow-Eyes for all we know and _that's_ why you had a vision of him."

He pulled into a parking spot then and the two brothers got out to head towards their room. Once they were inside and had locked the door behind them, Sam turned to face Dean; not yet willing to give up on their conversation.

"He isn't evil, Dean and I don't think he's working for the demon either."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I trust what my instincts are telling me." Sam responded, giving Dean his puppy-dog eyes. "Promise me that you won't shoot first and ask questions later if we ever meet him again."

"All right." Dean agreed a couple of seconds later, grumbling. He could never resist his little brother's puppy-dog eyes. They should be banned from being used on him. It just ain't right! "But how do you even know that your little wet dream was even real?" He asked again only to irritate Sam and grinned in success when he saw his brother roll his eyes in annoyance.

"Because I just saw him." He answered. "And it wasn't a wet dream, jerk."

Dean only answered with a chuckle.

…

**Harry…**

The next day proved to be quite fruitful but daunting in his search for Savage. He had managed to find the Offspring's Hospital Rook had mentioned the night before and with somewhat of a success found that a patient by the name of Rosie checked out of the hospital about a week and a half ago.

Charming the receptionist to give him the girl's address was a bit difficult but with a doe-eyed look along with a pretty convincing tale that even he was surprised that he had managed to come up with, she had written it down for him and had asked him to give her regards to the young woman.

By three o' clock in the afternoon, Harry was leaving the house of the one named Rosie with all the information he could acquire from her that left his stomach feeling like it was full of lead.

It was a sure fact now that Savage had rescued the young woman from a Deatheater. He had to report in to Kingsley what he had found as soon as he checked out one last place.

The scene where Savage had come into contact with the Deatheater.

There was a possibility that Savage had returned to the scene to see if he could track down the Deatheater and if that was true, he might've left a trail that Harry could pick up.

Sighing, he began to make his way towards the part of the woods that Rosie had generously pointed out to him; making a mental note that he needed a better way of traveling around the place instead of walking. Almost unconsciously, he patted down his hair to make sure that it covered his lightning bold scar as he passed a few people on the street and cautiously, without drawing anyone's attention, entered the wooded area.

Making sure to never drop his sense of awareness, Harry tramped his way through the woods with a slight nostalgia of his time running through the Forbidden Forest with Ron by his side. But at least this time around, he didn't have to be worried about being eaten by thousands of acromantulas. He hoped so anyway.

The thought of his late friends still caused him to feel sorrow, but at the same time filled him with great relief that he could still recall them so easily. He never wanted to forget them.

Seeing that the trees were thinning out, Harry emerged into an opening that looked like it had suffered from a small battle that had taken place. Or to be more accurately, a magical duel.

Harry walked cautiously towards one of the trees that suffered the most damage and studied it with a critical eye. It had been hit by the killing curse he was sure, as the tree was voided of all life that it had once been instilled with. He followed the destruction further into the woods, his heart pounding from the anticipation of what he would find.

So focused on following the trail of destruction, he almost missed the exact object that he was searching for until he was stopped in his tracks by a voice.

"Potter?" Savage called out, slowly materializing out of thin air. He briefly wondered if Savage had been using a disillusionment charm until he realized that he could _see_ Savage along with the tree behind him.

"Savage! Are you a ghost?" He asked incredulously, jumping back in surprise. "Wha-How did this happen? Where's your body?"

Savage gave him a wry smile.

"Survive the war against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and get done in by one of his lackeys. It's quite shameful." He answered. "But I refused to move on until I've done my job."

Never let it be said that the man named Savage wasn't dedicated to his job.

"What happened?"

"As I think you already know, I saved a young woman from a Deatheater and when I got the girl safely into a hospital, I came back in hopes that I'd find out what he was up to. The bloody bastard was hiding somewhere in the shadows waiting for me and attacked me and as you can see from my appearance," he said, gesturing at his incorporeal form. "I didn't make it. Bastard turned my body into that stone there by my feet."

Harry frowned, his eyes reflecting his sorrow for his fellow auror member but Savage just simply waved it off.

"Don't go feeling sorry for me, Potter." He said. "What's important now is that you get the news to Shacklebolt."

"News?"

"The Deatheaters here are working with demons." Savage answered with such certainty that drove the air out of Harry's lungs. It was worse than everyone had thought. He gave a frustrated sigh. "I wasn't able to discover exactly what they were up to but they are working towards something big. Now that you're here, I hope that you'll be able to figure it out and put an end to it before it's too late."

"Of course." Harry replied, once again throwing himself into the middle of trouble without much thought of the consequences. Gryffindor recklessness, Severus would've called it. "I'll try my best but right now, we got to-"

Harry was cut off when a gun shot went off and with reflexes acquired from life and training, he threw himself aside to land in a crouch behind a shrub with his wand in hand. Savage was no where to be seen and Harry scanned his surroundings for the threat that had come upon them.

"Dean! You promised you wouldn't shoot first!" A familiar voice filled the air, scolding the person who shot the gun. Harry cautiously peeked through the opening that the shrub allowed and to his great surprise, Sam was standing a few feet away with who Harry assumed was his brother.

"It was a ghost!" The other man defended. "What did you expect me to do? And was it just me or was that kid having a freakin' conversation with it?"

Harry groaned quietly, rubbing a hand over his scar on his forehead. Of all things to run into, it had to be those two and apparently, they _were_ hunters.

Just bloody fantastic.


	4. 03

Chapter Three

Hunters. Harry thought. Of all things that had to appear, it had to be hunters. Two hunters, to be exact.

Harry pouted while resisting the urge to smack his head against a hard surface, aware that if he did it was most probable that the noise would give him away.

Above him, Trouble was cackling in delight at the dilemma that one of his most favorite people in world to follow was facing. It wiped tears of laughter from its eyes, flicking the droplets away where they evaporated quickly into the air. These three always promised such an entertaining time.

"Dean!" The one that had introduced himself to Harry as Sam said. "Put the gun away already! You promised you weren't going to shoot anything."

So much for that promise. Harry thought, staying in his crouched position behind his shrub. How the two snuck up on him, he wasn't sure but the two carried a scent of danger on them that Harry wondered why he wasn't able to sense it last night.

'_Because you weren't on constant vigilance, Potter!_' Moody's voice echoed in his mind and he sighed quietly. He was so screwed up for life.

"Are you blind, Sammy? It was a ghost!" The man now known as Dean defended his actions, scanning the area for the threat a.k.a. the ghost. "Why are you so calm about it anyway?"

"I told you already, I saw _it._" Harry was sure there was a deeper meaning behind that statement but he didn't know what. "It's happening exactly the same way." He said, also scanning the area but in his case, he was hoping to spot Harry. He turned his attention to address Harry, wherever Harry was.

"Harry? Harry, are you here? Look, we just wanna talk." He called out, trying to salvage the situation before it got out of hand.

Harry suppressed a snort, says the guy with a gun-waving lunatic for a brother. He briefly wondered where Savage's ghost was and peered through the openings of the shrub to take a look at the spot where Savage was before drawing his attention to where the two hunters were.

They were about ten feet away from his hiding spot and Harry contemplated on what he should do now.

"We know that you're a witch and that you're considered a hero from where you're from for killing an evil man." Sam said, making Harry frown at the incorrect label and his knowledge of his unwanted status. "We don't mean any harm, Dean just saw the ghost and thought you were in trouble."

Harry's face showed his confusion and worry. So they were aiming at Savage? But he was a ghost wasn't he, so he shouldn't be hurt, right?

Harry hesitated for a minute, collecting his thoughts. Savage should be all right. The voice addressing him sounded sincere enough to his ears but then again, hunters were known to be calculative and manipulative. Harry paused at that thought, that wasn't exactly anything new to him with the life he's led. Still, the magical community was hidden from muggles, especially hunters, in fear of a 'witch hunt' arising once more, so how did this hunter obtain the knowledge? Biting his lip, he decided to take a chance, ignoring the voice that sounded eerily like his favorite snarky professor calling him an imbecile.

Besides, he thought to himself, he could always magically summon the gun to him if they decided to try and shoot him. He didn't think hunters applied to the muggle-magic rule and if it did, he was never a stickler for rules anyway. Above all else, he really preferred that they were able to settle this in friendly terms without anyone gaining any unwanted extra holes in their body.

"Then why's that bloke still waving his gun around like a maniac?" Harry questioned aloud, self-preservation preventing him from immediately showing himself. He watched as the taller Winchester give the other a stern glare until he lowered his weapon with a disgruntled look on his face.

"Sure, like there aren't any potential deadly ghosts hanging around here." Dean grumbled to himself. Sam decided to ignore him, trusting Harry that he wouldn't cause them any harm.

"Why don't you come out so we can talk?"

Still unsure whether he can trust them or not, Harry quietly casted an invisible shield around him before he summoned the courage to step out of his hiding place. His wand was lowered and out of sight but like the shorter Winchester, he was prepared to use his weapon of choice if necessary.

When all parties were out in the open, a rather uncomfortable silence followed them and Sam's brother shifted slightly on his feet. A few seconds passed without anyone saying anything.

"Awkward." He said, gaining a small amused smile from Harry and an exasperated look from his brother.

"Well, you _were_ the one who shot at me." Harry pointed out, just going along with the flow for now.

"I was aiming for the ghost!" The older man, Harry could tell, responded, defending his actions once again. Harry hmmed, looking around their surroundings in concern.

"What did you do exactly?" He questioned. "I thought ghosts couldn't be hurt by anything."

"Rock salts." Sam answered. "It doesn't exactly hurt them but spirits are repelled by it."

Filing the offered information away, Harry made a mental note to try it on Peeves some time in the future.

"Is-Is he going to be able to come back?" He asked tentatively, concerned for the older auror now turned ghost.

"I am already back, Potter." Savage responded, suddenly appearing to the right of Harry triggering three events to happen almost instantaneously.

As soon as Dean raised his gun to shoot at Savage who once again vanished from sight, Harry casted the 'accio' charm followed by a stupefy, stunning Dean who fell over with a 'thump.'

"Dean!" Sam cried out in alarm as Harry caught the gun deftly in his hand. He watched the taller hunter get down on his knees to check on his brother. "What did you do?" The hunter demanded angrily when he found that Dean was unconscious.

"I stunned him." He answered, eyeing him warily as he tensed his body in preparation of an attack.

"Well, undo it!" Sam demanded and Harry pursed his lips, his eyes narrowing in irritation.

"I'm not going to undo anything if he's going to go around shooting everything that moves!" He said hotly, upset that Savage was shot twice in front of him. Nevermind that it didn't truly hurt him but it was the principle of the matter! No one likes getting shot at… Well, most people anyway.

"Look, if you undo whatever you did, I promise you that I won't let Dean do that anymore." He said almost desperately. Seeing Sam give him puppy-dog eyes, Harry tried his best to ignore the small flutter that his heart gave at the look and forced back the blush that was threatening to break out on his cheeks.

He wasn't interested in the man in that way but he wasn't blind either.

"If he doesn't attack again." Harry stated, emphasizing the point. Getting an agreement on Sam's part, he cast the reversal spell and watched Dean opened his eyes and sat up with a look of confusion on his face.

"Dean, are you all right?"

"Yeah." Dean muttered, trying to clear his head. "What happened?"

Sam chose to stay silent, unsure how to explain the situation without Dean going off the handle. A short silence ensued until Dean's memory caught up to him and he let out a curse.

"Son of a bitch!" He said angrily and struggled to his feet.

Sam, predicting his brother's next action, prevented him from attacking Harry who looked prepared to give as much as he got. He held the gun at an odd angle, unsure of how to handle it but knew enough to keep the mouth of the gun aimed anywhere but towards his body.

He narrowed his eyes at the elder hunter who was throwing curses and death threats his way, his green eyes flashing in irritation. His wand hand itched to turn the man into a toad but he refrained. Maybe another time but he really hoped to never see him ever again after this day.

"Dean!" Sam scolded. "Calm down already!"

"He did something to me!" Dean responded, giving Harry a dirty look in which he responded to by sticking his tongue out at the man and flashed the stolen gun at him. "And he's got my gun!"

"It's filled with rock salt," Sam pointed out. "Besides, I don't think him having the gun is the biggest threat at the moment."

Everyone in the clearing knew that he meant Harry's magical abilities. He sighed in frustration.

"I'm not the one shooting at everything that moves and you're worried that _I'm _the one that's the threat?" He asked indignantly, swinging the gun up and down as he spoke. "So I shot a spell at him but it wasn't dangerous _and_ you said you didn't mean any harm! Shooting at people and things are considered causing harm!"

"Hey! Careful with that!" Dean said, concerned with the well-being of his gun. Harry shot him an angry look but stopped erratically shaking the gun and crossed his arms in front of his chest. He had his wand hidden in the sleeve of his shirt while the gun dangled limply from his hand.

Dean rubbed the back of his head and tried to offer an explanation after receiving Sam's 'bitch face' directing at him.

"It was a reflex."

"Of course, it was." Harry said sardonically but already his feelings of anger were slowly diminishing. He understood all too well that to be able to survive as long as they did doing what they do for a living was to the credit of their developed reflexes and training but he wasn't about to forgive him for shooting an acquaintance of his, dead already or not. He sighed, throwing the gun back at the elder Winchester after wandlessly vanishing the rock salt from within. "Trigger-happy Americans." He muttered loudly enough to be heard by the two.

"So, uh… what are you doing here?" Sam spoke up before Dean could come up with a smartass retort to Harry's comment. He gave him an incredulous look. Did they really follow him all this way just to ask him that question?

"He was looking for me." Savage once again reappeared next to Harry, making the three jump a bit in surprise.

"Dude! Can you stop doing that?" Dean said and Harry suppressed a smirk at the sight of him unconsciously grip his gun as if it were his safety blanket. From what he's seen of the man, it probably was.

Savage gave him an unimpressed look. It was obvious that he was peeved that he was shot at two times by the hunter.

"Looking for you?" Sam questioned, trying to prevent a fight to break out. Daylight was slowly thinning out as the sun sunk down below the horizon but no one seemed bothered by it, everyone was more interested in finding out the truth than the lack of light.

"I was alive three weeks ago," Savage began, unconcerned that he was making them uncomfortable by his blunt answer. "I assumed that young Potter here was sent here to find me since I haven't been able to contact them. I haven't gotten the hang of ghostlihood yet, I'm afraid."

"Why _are _you a ghost?" Harry asked, beyond curious. "Nearly Headless Nick-"

"Nearly headless?" Dean's voice interrupted, bewildered as much as his brother. "Wha- How?"

"It was a blunt ax," Harry answered automatically, familiar with the question from the first six years of his life in school before going back to the situation at hand. "He said wizards only become ghosts when they're afraid of death."

"The magic in America works a bit differently than where we're from. You can feel it in the air, can't you?"

Harry nodded at the question. The magic here felt heavier somehow, dirty; contaminated with something that was slowly growing stronger by the day.

"I believe that once I've completed my duty, I will be able to move on." Savage said in a contemplative manner. "Be wary, Potter. Deatheaters alone is usually a bad sign but with them working with demons, it makes them a terrifying force to be reckoned with."

"Wait, hold on. What the hell are Deatheaters?" Dean cut in once more, unwilling to stay out of the conversation now that demons were brought up.

Harry took a second to think of what the consequences would be for exposing further information about the wizarding world before pushing the thought aside. It didn't matter. With the two being hunters, they were bound to run into them sooner or later and it was better for them to be prepared for what they'd be facing.

Savage refrained from commenting, trusting Harry's decision on what needs to be done.

"Deatheaters are dark wizards and witches." He began. "They believe in pureblood supremacy and want to rid the world of muggles, non-magical humans." He added the last part for the Winchesters' benefit. "With them working with demons, we aren't sure what they're up to but we know that it isn't anything good. There have been rumors that after the defeat of their master, they've fled to America but we weren't sure of it until now."

Harry gestured to the form of Savage who took it as his cue to continue.

"Some of us were sent to investigate the rumors and report back." Savage studied the figure of Sam with scrutinizing eyes, making the two brothers tense. "There has been talk of the Winchesters from the knowledge that I've been able to attain. Especially that of the one named Samuel Winchester."

"What did you find out?" Sam asked, his voice revealing the uncertainty he carried within him.

"I don't know." Savage answered. "I was only able to find out that they have 'big plans in stored for you.'"

Harry watched Sam's face pale slightly and he felt sympathy for him. He knew what it felt like with people plotting and planning about your being, however unwilling you are of it all.

Savage began to flicker suddenly and he looked at himself curiously.

"I believe it's time for me to move on now." He stated, turning his eyes onto Harry. "Please report in to Shacklebolt for me and…" For once his face reflected the sorrow he felt of his lost life. "Send my body back to my family. Tell my wife that I'm sorry." And with that he was gone and Harry felt the surge of pain and lost dwelling within him before he pushed the powerful emotions back and locked it in a room he created specifically for it.

He allowed it to come out moderately but he was sure to drown in it if the door was ever unlocked.

He looked down, his black locks of hairs shielding his eyes from the two hunters in front of him. Calming himself, he took a deep breath before heading towards the rock that Savage had shown him earlier.

The two brothers looked on at him in silence, unsure of how to proceed with the small wizard that was before them.

"I-I have to report in," Harry began, carefully picking up the smooth stone and gazing at the Winchesters with sorrow-filled green eyes. "Look, I'm not a threat to anybody as long as they aren't out to hurt anyone. My job is just the same as you are. Protecting people from danger."

With that last comment, he left them to stew in their thoughts as he moved a few feet away from them to contact Kingsley. A part of him was yelling at him for turning his back on the pair of hunters but another part trusted that Sam would keep his word and keep his brother from attacking.

Jotting down all the vital information he was given in the quickly dimming light, Harry pulled out his portkey and attached it along with the stone to it. It would cause less of a commotion that way and activating the portkey, he watched it popped away in a matter of seconds. He was sure Kingsley would find a way to send him another.

He straightened himself out, mentally preparing himself for the path that lied ahead.

Though his assignment was only to locate Savage and uncover the truth behind the rumor of Deatheaters, both of which he had done so, he had made a promise to the man and he intend to keep it.

Walking back the way he came, he hoped that the Winchesters were gone but as fate would have it, they were still standing there although looking a bit more awkward than when he left them. He gave them a questioning look as he stood before them.

"What are you going to do now?" Sam asked him.

"I'm going to search for the Deatheaters." He answered. "They came here because we weren't able to capture them all so it's my job to stop them before they carry out whatever they plan."

"How are you gonna get around?"

Harry shrugged his thin shoulders.

"Hitchhike, walk," _Apparate_, if he knew what his destination was. "Anything that gets me place to place."

"Great, you're coming with us then." Dean broke in, giving him a charming grin that Harry couldn't help but stare at. His mind wrapped around the words spoken seconds later and he sputtered in surprise.

"W-what?"

"I don't trust you." Dean said bluntly but pointed at Sam. "But Sammy here, _he_ believes that you're one of the good guys, so what better way to keep an eye on you than traveling with us."

Harry felt his eye twitch in annoyance at the decision that was made for him rather than run by him. Damning the possible consequences for pissing off a hunter, he marched up to the man and poked him hard in the chest. He glared up at the man, who was nearly a foot taller than him, with a deadly look in his eyes.

"You don't _get_ to decide what I do. You have no _right._" He said, poking the man once again who actually winced from the sensation of his rather bony fingers. "I'll find my own way around." He said stubbornly, looking a lot like a discontent cat to the Winchesters.

"Harry, please." Sam broke in, drawing his attention away from poking at the elder brother's stomach. "He didn't mean it like that. It just sounds a lot like we're working towards the same goal, so it would be easier for all of us if we stick together. Plus, I'm sure we all have questions that we want to ask."

There was more to it than what Sam was saying, Harry realized and he narrowed his eyes in suspicion. The longer he stuck around with the Winchesters, the more it seemed like he was being sucked into something that he wouldn't be able to escape from. But still, with the Deatheaters and demons interested in Sam, it was his best bet if he stayed with them. Also, he was sure that they had some answers that were vital to his search.

"All right." He muttered in agreement rather reluctantly when he realized he wasn't going to be escaping the Winchester brothers anytime soon. The moment he uttered those words, it felt like an invisible string was forming around his magical core and connecting him to the two Winchester brothers, signaling that his life was now very much intertwined with theirs as they were with his.

It was at this very moment that he was beginning to think that maybe he rushed into this a little too soon and he couldn't help but mutter quietly to himself at the thought, "Bloody hell."

And so began his journey with the two Winchester brothers.

…

**A/N**: All right! Finally done with the backstory. Oh yeshh… The next chapter will begin Harry's adventures with the two Winchesters. =D I tried to keep them in character as much as possible but if I didn't… well, I can say that I tried my best. =P

Once again, thank you for the support! ^-^\V/


	5. 04

Chapter Four

It's been three weeks since Harry had been traveling with the Winchesters and to say the least, life was anything but dull. It was more suspenseful than anything else.

Though, the first week was a bit uneventful for Harry due to him trying to clear up the fact that _no, _he was NOT a witch but a wizard and _no_, he didn't sell his soul to demons for his abilities. He had to even purchase '_So, Your Child's a Wizard' _and '_The Nature of Magic and Innate Abilities' _books from Flourish & Blotts that were usually recommended for muggle parents to read and had to pay extra to ship it by owl post to his location.

He could still recall the stunned look on Dean's and Sam's face when they came face to face with the barn owl with a package attached to its leg resting on top of the Impala. Dean seemed as if he was going to have a heart attack at the sight and had let out a startled cry as he ran towards his car in fear that his 'baby' was scratched.

To Harry's greatest pleasure and Dean's ultimate horror, the talons of the owl's did indeed leave several scratches on the roof of the car that the hunter held precious to him.

Sam had to literally hold Dean back from pulling his gun out at the owl who stared at him with a haughty, if it was possible for owl's to do so, look and then turned its back on the enraged hunter as a form of snubbing him. Harry had found it all too amusing, chuckling while untying the package from the owl's leg and giving the dehydrated owl some water.

"Laugh it up, chucklehead. I'm so going owl hunting." Dean growled, alternating between casting mournful looks at his car and deadly glares at the barn owl who had deemed him unworthy to even pay attention to.

To make matters worse, the owl had nipped at the hunter's ear in retaliation for even thinking about shooting it before flying off towards home. Harry guessed that if he had to travel with the Winchesters, he figured that he at least got to see an owl get the best of the seemingly tough hunter. Even Sam had found it amusing, though he tried to keep a sympathetic front knowing how much Dean loved his car.

Without opening the package, Harry had tossed it at the taller hunter and told him to read up and expand his knowledge. With proof backing up his case of him being magically innate, Sam's last reserve of him vanished and he found himself an ally in this new world. Well, he considered it a new world since everything was so much different than back in the Wizarding World. The monsters and creatures anyways.

On the other hand, Dean was still a bit paranoid around him; half convinced that Harry was going to strip off his 'pretty' face mask and kill him and Sam in their sleep when they least suspected it. Harry had offered to stay in a different room whenever they stopped at a motel if the hunter was so afraid but the elder Winchester always refused his offer, stating that he didn't trust Harry alone for too long.

Harry's response was simply to ask if Dean wanted to watch him shower and take a piss as well while he was at it, watching in amusing when the Winchester's face turned a charming tint of red while sputtering denials.

After much debate with his brother, Sam filled Harry in with as much information that they had but only if Harry, in return, answered all the questions that they had. Questions were ranged from further details on Deatheaters to the final battle that Harry learned that Sam had dreamt about. It was a bit disconcerting at first to learn that Sam had _seen_ it but overall, Harry wasn't too concerned about Sam's ability. That is, unless he started spouting prophesies left and right all of a sudden.

He had enough prophesies to last him a lifetime.

**The Present…**

Harry was currently sitting in the backseat of the Impala as they headed off to their next destination where there was a possible job awaiting them, according to Dean.

Harry was going to argue and leave the two hunters to go on his own until he heard that people were apparently vanishing from their beds in the middle of the night without leaving a single trace behind. When the first victim vanished, a teenaged girl, the authorities had simply concluded that she had run away from home. Teen rebellion, they called it, only to rescind their words a day later when another person was reported missing; an elderly man this time around. Within the week, four more people followed and it had caused a mini hysteria to break out within the city.

Harry couldn't possibly walk away knowing that and now here they were, heading towards said city in hopes of uncovering the mystery and kill it, if it turned out to be something supernatural.

Harry wiggled a bit in his seat, trying to get comfortable. He was getting a bit antsy from sitting in a car for too long. A train he was used to, but a car was another thing. One couldn't exactly get up to stretch one's legs in a car.

He pouted at how much at ease the two Winchesters seemed to be even after three hours had passed since Dean had first started driving. Sam was reading another book that Harry had gotten him from the Wizarding World, this time a book about magical creatures since he thought it would be useful to them considering their occupation.

Feeling someone's eyes on him, he lifted his gaze from looking outside the window at the passing scenery to the rearview mirror where his eyes met that of one Dean Winchester's. He narrowed his eyes at the man in suspicion when his face suddenly broke out into his infamous crooked grin. It was the same grin that Harry had begun identifying it to when the Winchester-

"Aww… is our own personal Sabrina, the Teenaged Witch not used to long car rides?"

Insulted him.

"Dean." Sam said with a low warning detected in his tone, he didn't want an argument to break out. It's a bit ironic that after years of Dean playing mediator between their dad and Sam, Sam now found himself a mediator between his brother and Harry.

Harry felt his eye twitch from irritation. He was so going to kick the man's ass someday if he kept it up with the witch comments. Or maybe, he contemplated, maybe he should sneak one of the Impala's headlights into Dean's bed when he was sleeping one night.

He imagined the bloodcurdling scream that would erupt from the Winchester's mouth when he discovered it the next morning when he woke up. The elder Winchester would most definitely be out for his blood, but it would be worth it to see the hunter so unhinged.

He suppressed the chuckle that was brought on from the thought and instead gave Dean a deadpan look.

"Do you want another scratch on your car?"

Dean's grin dropped from his face immediately and in place was a doubtful look.

"You wouldn't." Harry raised one of his eyebrows in a form of a challenge.

"Wouldn't I?"

"If you scratch my car, I swear I'm going to break every bone in your body." Dean threatened, his hackles raised high at the potential danger his baby may be facing. Harry simply waved the threat away, unaffected.

"I've had worser threats thrown at me than what you've said, Winchester. You don't scare me." He said. Severus had more frightening threats than what the hunter had thrown at him. "Try to be more imaginative, would you?"

"I'll show you imaginative." Dean muttered but focused his attention back on the road. Seeing that a fight wasn't going to break out any time soon, Sam went back to reading and that left Harry to sigh as he turned to look at the passing scenery once more.

This was such a long car ride.

…

"You stay here," Dean said, pointing at Harry who was sitting on a motel bed with a rebellious look on his face. "While the experts go investigate-"

"More like cosplay." Harry interrupted while looking critically at the two who were in federal suits. He readily admitted out loud that he thought Sam looked sexy when the two changed, making the taller hunter blush (it was the second week in that Harry revealed that he was more oriented towards men after a comment from Dean) while he casted a skeptical look at Dean and asked where he picked up the monkey in the suit.

To be honest, the man looked downright attractive in his suit but Harry would be damned to admit it. If the man wasn't on the list of most irritating people he's ever met and if the man wasn't so distrusting of him, he definitely wouldn't mind having some one on one action with the man. As it were, the only one on one action that the two could ever get into was if Harry smashed his fist into the hunter's jaw.

Dean had sputtered in indignation at Harry's insult but he quickly calmed himself and took great pleasure in informing the wizard that he wasn't allowed to go with them while they interviewed the families.

"Harry, please. Just stay here and we'll be back as soon as we can." Sam said, trying to placate him. Harry couldn't believe it. He was an auror! He wasn't some inexperienced kid who had to be sat on the sidelines while others did all the work.

He shot Sam an angry look but then his face cleared, smoothing out into a face full of acceptance. He gave Sam a bright smile, much to the irritation of Dean. An extra perk for doing so, if Harry had to say so himself.

"Okay." He said agreeably. "I'll wait." He never exactly said that he'd be staying in one place while he was waiting for them. He ignored Dean's looks of suspicion and tried his best to appear innocent and sweet. He kept it up until the Winchesters left before dropping it all together and his eyes flashed with fury.

Idiotic hunters.

Sam was all right for the most part but they had another thing coming to them if they thought they'd be able to keep him from the job. He was here in America for a reason and it was not to become a subservient being to the Winchesters.

Scribbling a quick note, in case if they came back before he did, he informed them that he was going off on his own search for answers and that he'll come back later on tonight.

He shouldered his ever trusty reliable backpack and left the room when he was sure that the Winchesters were gone. Out in the open doors, Harry took a deep breath and took in his surroundings, deciding on where to go first. It was best that he avoided the two brothers until afterwards, not in the mood to get involved in an argument with the elder… again.

In deep concentration, he let his feet lead him to his destination and found himself in front of a park. There weren't many kids out playing at the time, which Harry found odd but it made it easier for him to take notice of a small kid being bullied by several others that were nearly twice as large as him.

It brought memories back to the days when Dudley would call on his friends to do some 'Harry-hunting' and without hesitation, he headed towards the group with purpose.

"Oi!" He called out, his face twisting into a stern and authoritative expression. "What do you think you're doing?"

The leader of the group looked up at him and realizing that he was an adult or at least someone much older than they were, he signaled to the rest and they took off running. He glared after them briefly before turning his attention to the small child.

"Hey, are you all right?" He asked, bending down to take a closer look at the kid.

"Y-yeah," the kid sniffled, rubbing his tear-stained eyes with the back of his hand. He looked relatively unharmed except a little ruffled from the tussle, but what really stood out was the darkened skin underneath the kid's eyes. It was obvious that the kid hasn't slept in a long while.

"I'm Harry. What's your name?"

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers. My mom said so." Harry smiled down at the child.

"That's pretty smart of her to say so." He responded. "But I was just wondering if this happens often?" He asked hesitantly.

"N-no," he denied, shaking his head for added effect. "J-Josh and his friends s-started it when all the people started disappearing. T-they said it was m-my family's fault b-because my s-sister was the f-first o-one to disappear."

Kids can be so cruel and Harry understood all too well on how cruel they could be.

"It w-wasn't, though!" The kid cried out defiantly, his hazel eyes pleading Harry to believe him. "I-it was the b-boogeyman! I-it came from her closet and it c-covered over her before it ate her! I saw it!" Harry felt an icy sensation run down his spine, not liking where this was going.

"What did it look like?" He asked seriously.

The kid stared up at him with wide eyes.

"You believe me?"

Harry nodded his head and suddenly the rule about talking to strangers was nonexistent in the kid's mind. He jumped up and tugged Harry to sit down next to him, clutching onto Harry's sleeve.

"My name's Jamie." The kid said, twisting the material between his fingers.

"That's a nice name. My father was named James, you know." Harry replied, his fondness growing for the little boy. "But most importantly, I need you to tell me what you saw, Jamie."

"I-it was like a big shadow," Jamie whispered softly as if many people have told him to not talk about it. It was probably true. "It came out of my sister's closet from underneath the door and it slid on the floor until it reached her bed. I-it c-covered her and she s-started moving a-around like she was f-fighting and then s-suddenly she stopped."

Big roll of tears started sliding down Jamie's face and Harry tentatively wiped the tears from his face.

"What happened next, Jamie?" Harry urged him to continue, hating that he had to make the kid relive it as he told it but he had to know. He had an inkling of what it could be.

"T-the b-boogeyman m-moved to the floor again and v-vanished b-back into the c-closet a-and m-my sister was gone." The kid started to really sob now and Harry, with all his reserve, couldn't help but reach out and draw the kid close in comfort.

"Shh… it's okay." Harry said in comfort but he knew all too well that it wasn't. Jamie hid his face into his sleeve, still clutching it like a lifeline. A sudden thought occurred to him then. "Jamie? Why were you in your sister's room that night?"

"I-I had a n-nightmare and s-she usually l-lets me sleep w-with her w-hen I do." Jamie replied. "S-she always said t-that i-if I didn't stop being a baby, t-the boogeyman was going to t-take me away a-and now s-she's gone! Maybe Josh was right and it was my fault."

Harry's heart went out for the kid; this was probably going to haunt the kid for the rest of his life. He gently lifted the child's face until he looked at him.

"Believe me when I tell you this, Jamie. It was _not_ your fault." Harry peered into the child's eyes, willing the child to believe him. It wasn't right that a child had to grow up blaming himself that he had no control over. "You aren't to blame for this. It was the monster and I promise you that I'll get rid of it."

"R-really?" Jamie asked, wiping his eyes.

"Really." Harry promised.

"W-will my sister c-come back w-when you do?"

Harry hesitated, unsure of how to answer.

"She might," he began, hoping above all hope that it was true. "But even though she can't, she will always be there to watch over you. She loves you."

Jamie nodded in understanding but his face still held much sorrow. He let go of Harry's sleeve, slowly getting up from the floor.

"I-I gotta get home now." The kid said, shuffling his feet. "My mom's waiting for me. She sent me out here when t-two guys came to our house to ask about my sister." Harry raised his brow in surprise.

Well, well. What a coincidence.

"Hey, Harry?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you really gonna be able to get rid of the boogeyman?" Jamie asked, nibbling on his bottom lip. Harry gave him a determined nod.

"I definitely will."

"W-will you tell me when you do?"

"Of course." He said, also standing up. "Listen, Jamie. Until I tell you that it's gone, I want you to always have a light on at night, okay? It'll keep you safe. Convince your mum and your dad to keep a light on, too. Can you promise me that?"

Jamie gave him a solemn nod, his expression was of someone far beyond his age and it saddened Harry to see such a child to lose his childlike innocence so early in life. He ruffled the kid's hair.

"We'll keep this between me and you, okay?" Jamie once again nodded, though a bit reluctantly this time. Harry trusted that the kid would be keeping his word. "I have to get going as well. Take care of yourself, Jamie."

"Okay. Good bye, Harry."

Harry stood there watching the young boy run home and only started walking towards his temporary home as well when he could no longer see the child. He mentally prepped himself for the argument that was sure to ensue when he got back to the motel.

…

"Where the hell have you been?" Was the first thing that Harry heard when he entered the motel room. Expecting such a greeting, Harry didn't flinch at the loud tones of the elder Winchester and gave him a bored look.

"Terrorizing kittens and small kids alike." He replied sarcastically, placing his backpack down on the table.

"We told you to stay here and wait."

"And I agreed that I would wait, I never said I was going to stay _here_ and wait." Harry pointed out, narrowing his eyes at the older Winchester. He looked around. "Where's Sam?"

"Food run." Dean bit out, glaring at the small wizard who had taken a seat on the table.

"So, what did you find out?" Harry asked, trying to sound civil. Dean scoffed.

"What makes you think that I'm going to tell you?"

Harry's eyes reflected his exasperation.

"Because we're working together." He pointed out.

"We are _not _working together." Dean denied and Harry could no longer keep his temper as he hopped off the table.

"What the bloody hell is your problem?" He demanded, marching up to the taller man. "You say that we have to travel together and then you're telling me that I'm not supposed to do anything to help? I'm not your _pet_. I know how to do the job and I _refuse_ to let you treat me like I'm a freak that you're burdened with."

"You _are _a freak and you wouldn't be able to do anything if you didn't use that stick of yours." Dean argued; throwing out not only an assumption that had doomed many people that Harry had faced in the past but also insulting him.

He hated the word freak.

Unable to hold his temper in any longer, he threw his fist at the elder man, smashing it into his face with a force that sent the man staggering back a few feet.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean cursed, nursing his jaw and staring disbelievingly at the smaller man.

"My mum is far from being a bitch, you arrogant arse." Harry retorted, getting into a fighting stance. He was tired of his attitude. "You wanna fight, then come at me."

It was all the warning he could get before Dean tried to tackle him and he twisted to the side, evading the man. He knew that if the man managed to pin him, it would be difficult to get out of his grasp.

Blocking a punch, he reciprocated one of his own that landed on the hunter's stomach. Dean may be stronger but Harry was definitely faster and he used it to his advantage as he kept dodging the older man's attempts of knocking him to the ground.

The adrenaline was pumping in both of their veins and Harry was determined to beat some sense into the man's skull.

The next couple of minutes was spent with Harry dodging, to the frustration of Dean, and minimized damage were inflicted on them both as they managed to land a punch here and there as they danced around the room.

Seeing that he couldn't keep dodging forever, Harry decided to switch tactics. Turning his body towards the punches, he stepped forward and like he predicted, forced Dean to back up. As soon as Dean backed up, he threw a punch aiming for his solar plexus only to have Dean turned a bit to the side so that it would graze off to the side.

He felt the man grab him by the shoulder and before he knew it, he was tossed into a wall where he bounced off it. The air was pushed from his lungs but he didn't let it deter him, flinging himself to the side when the man came at him again. He lifted his leg and landed a kick to the side of the hunter's knee, causing him to become imbalance.

He threw himself at the man without hesitation and they both tumbled to the ground with a loud crash. Determined to not lose the fight, Harry fought with all his vigor; slipping from the man's hold when he even showed signs of pinning him.

It took some maneuvering as they began rolling around on the motel floor, knocking into the table and chairs as they went but eventually Harry managed to grasp Dean's arm and twist it as far as he could without it breaking behind Dean's back. His other hand was on Dean's head, tangled in his hair as he forced the hunter's head flat on the ground.

Dean couldn't move without the possibility of his arm breaking and so he remained still. Harsh breathing filled the room as they both tried to catch their breath, Harry never releasing his hold on the man.

It was then that Sam opened the door to the motel room, his arms juggling with the bags of food he had purchased for the three of them. He had not yet seen them as he was trying to reassure the neighbors that there was nothing going on in the room. He closed the door behind him.

"What the hell, Dean? The neighbors seem to think you're having wild sex in here." It was then that he decided to look up and took in the scene before him. "Huh, I guess they weren't too far off." He said, stunning the two men on the floor.

Used to innuendos tossed at him from George, Harry was the first to recover and gave Sam a playful smile as he leaned further onto Dean.

"Oh, Sam. I was just correcting Winchester's error." He said. "But you, I wouldn't mind proving the neighbors right." He teased Sam, whose face turned red and he stuttered a refusal. Dean decided to speak up.

"Will you stop propositioning my brother?" He asked with a tone that signified that he was a bit frustrated.

"Why? Do you prefer that I proposition you instead?" Harry asked kiddingly, only to have Dean ignore his question. Huh, he was sure that the man would've had a retort for that.

"You proved your point. Can you get off me now?" Dean asked gruffly, beginning to feel a bit mortified that he was pinned down by someone who was way smaller than he was. He would've been chewed out for allowing himself to ever be in this position if his father was there to see it. Harry patted the hunter's hair mockingly before letting go and rushed to stand next to Sam in case Dean saw fit to retaliate.

He stuck his tongue out at the elder hunter much to the amusement of Sam.

"What was that all about?" Sam asked, setting the food on the table. He handed Harry a bag who offered him a smile in thanks before picking up a tipped over chair and sat down.

"Winchester over there," he refused to call Dean by his first name. The man refused to call Harry 'Harry' instead opting to calling him 'Witch boy' when he needed his attention. He should've smacked the man's head around a little harder until the word was erased from his mind. "He was being a complete git. I'm here to do a job just as much as you two are and I'm _not_ going to wait around doing nothing. I offered my help and he refuses to accept it."

He didn't need to mention that he could always leave if he found that they were preventing him from doing his job.

Dean opened his mouth to object but Sam interjected himself before he could get a word out.

"He's right, Dean. We can't just keep him locked in a room. From what we saw this afternoon, he can walk out when he wants to just fine." Dean crossed his arms in front of his chest in defiance but he didn't argue. He was still nursing a bruised ego. "And right now, we need to concentrate on this case."

"And I can help." Harry added.

"And he can help." Sam said, looking at Dean. Dean sighed and eventually nodded his head, giving in.

"All right." He said, sitting down on a chair. "Where's my burger with extra onions?" He grabbed the bag that Sam gestured to with eager fingers and began munching down on it. "Did you get me pie?"

"Yes, Dean."

"About the monster," Harry began, bring them back on topic. "I think I may know what it is but first I was wondering if you can tell me what you found."

"No one in any of the families saw anything the night that their family member was abducted but they all say the same thing; that it was like they just vanished." Sam said, opening his laptop up while placing his food to the side. "Nothing was taken, nothing out of place, and no forced entries of any kind."

"Though there was one family, the teen that was abducted," Sam said thoughtfully. "They mentioned that their son kept saying he saw the boogeyman take his sister."

"But of course, the family didn't believe his word." Dean added, his mouth full. Harry winced as he wiped a piece of meat from his cheek that Dean had managed to send flying when he talked. The infuriating man gave him a cheeky grin.

"I talked to the little boy earlier today actually," Harry admitted. "He called it the boogeyman but the way he described it makes it sound a whole lot like a lethifold."

"A lethi-what?" Dean asked, his mouth thankfully empty this time around. Sam had a small concerned frown on his face as he went to retrieve the book that he had been reading all along in the car.

"A lethifold." Sam repeated, opening the book to the proper page. "Or better known as a living shroud. It looks like a black cloak that's about a half inch thick and it moves along the ground at night to hunt its prey. It attacks sleeping humans in which it then smothers them and then digests them in their own beds."

"Well, that explains why there aren't any traces. What kind of creature does that? A man can't even sleep in his own bed anymore without fearing of getting eaten." Dean said. "So, how do we kill it?"

"I'm not sure if it would kill it, a Patronus charm would repel it." Harry answered.

Dean frowned.

"Great, so we research."

"And find out where it goes when it's not off hunting." Harry added, biting his bottom lip in concern. Something was bothering him about all this. Lethifolds are rare creatures. "How did it even get here?" He wondered aloud, gaining the two Winchesters' attention.

"They usually stay in the tropics, but for them to be here…" He trailed off.

"Someone had to have brought it here." Sam concluded. "Could it be the people you're searching for?"

"There's a high possibility that the Deatheaters are behind it." Harry agreed. "But these creatures are rare, almost impossible to find or even capture."

"But somehow these DarkVadar people managed it?"

"Deatheaters." Sam automatically corrected.

"Whatever." Dean said. "Why would they do that?" Harry considered it.

"They've always hated muggles, believing that they're the inferior race." Harry answered. "But to use a lethifold, it's unclear on how they could've even caught one to bring it here."

There was a brief silence while they were all lost in their own thoughts until Dean stood up, crumbling up his bag.

"Well, get to it, College Boy. Research while me and Witch Boy here go search for clues to its location." Harry wanted to object going with Dean but it was a step forward. Better than the Winchester thinking he could tell Harry to stay as if he were a dog and obey his orders.

Harry stood up, his burger half finished.

"Are you gonna finish that?" He rolled his eyes at the man but never the less handed his burger over to Dean who took it gleefully. The man would eat about anything, it seems.

Sam was a bit concerned about the two of them going off together. It was only a while ago that they were fighting and he hoped it wasn't Dean's intention of killing Harry with no witnesses around.

As if sensing Sam's thoughts, Harry gave him a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry about it, Sam. Dean won't be able to kill me." He said, draping himself over Sam's shoulder as he had taken to do. At first it was to make the younger hunter uncomfortable, but as Sam got used to it, he continued to do it anyway. Not only did he get to feel the fit muscles underneath Sam's clothes but it also felt nice to be able to lean on someone. "It's proven that I can defend myself against the big bad hunter." He tossed a self-satisfying look at the glowering Winchester.

Sam couldn't help but chuckle.

"Enough already, let's go." Dean bit out, pulling Harry off of Sam with a harsher than necessary tug.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were jealous, Winchester." Harry pointed out while they were making their way towards the Impala, trying to keep stride with the man. They got into the car; Harry, for once since he joined them, got to be in the front seat.

"Psh, you wish, Witch Boy." Dean retorted, starting up his car. Dean's denial sounded a bit weak to Harry's ears but he just assumed it was all in his mind. There was no way that the man was jealous of him paying attention to Sam. If anything, Dean was probably upset that Harry was taken Sam's attention from Dean.

Brother complexes.

"Do you know where to start looking?" Harry asked after Dean had backed out of the parking spot and started driving.

"Nope." He answered with a grin. "But maybe something will happen."

Harry sighed in exasperation but couldn't help a tiny smile appearing on his face. He turned to face the window, letting Dean's music wash over him. They were the most at ease with each other at the moment and Harry reflected amusedly that he was correct that indeed the only one on one action that would happen between them was Harry's fist to Dean's face.

They had been driving for a while now, and the car was slowly lulling Harry into a drowsy state until he spotted something that looked quite familiar to him in the alley.

"Stop the car!" He shouted, startling Dean who jerked immediately to a stop.

"What is it?" He said, alarmed as he saw Harry unbuckle his seatbelt and practically fly out the car towards the alleyway. "Dammit!" He cried out, getting out of the car as well to follow after Harry.

Harry raced after the Deatheater, all too aware that he could be led into a trap but he wasn't too worried about it for the moment. He'd deal with it when the time comes.

Pulling out his wand, he tried to casting stupefy but he couldn't get a good shot at the fleeing wizard. All he could do was chase after him and hopefully, get some answers. He heard footsteps behind him and knew that Dean had followed him.

"Winchester, stay out of this!" He called back towards the man. If it truly was a trap, he didn't want the hunter to be any part of it.

"Bullshit!" Was the reply. "You said we work together, so we'll work together." Harry nearly groaned. Of all times for the Winchester to be cooperative, it had to be right now.

They followed the Deatheater into an abandoned building; Dean pulling out his gun that were filled with silver bullets. They cautiously entered, masking their footsteps so that it wouldn't give them away.

A streak of red flew through the air and Harry pulled Dean down to avoid being hit, casting his own towards where the spell originated.

"I don't think I have to tell you to avoid all streaks of light." Harry said as they both ducked behind a crate.

"Learned that lesson the first time you cursed me." Dean answered, peering over their make shift shield to see if he could spot the Deatheater.

"Mr. Potter," a voice floated through the air towards them.

"Lestrange." He hissed. He was sure that it was the husband of Bellatrix. Even in her death, the bitch still managed to wreck havoc through her spouse. "What are you doing here? Not able to kiss the hems of your lord anymore so you've turned to bowing down to demons?"

"You know nothing, boy. The demons hold much more promise than what the Dark Lord ever proposed. The power they have, what they have granted us." Rodolphus said, a power-hungry look in his eye. "Mudbloods and blood traitors alike will soon be put in their rightful places and you, Potter, we will gladly stick your head on a spike in forever remembrance of our moment of victory."

"That's so archaic, Lestrange. Even after years of serving an insane master, your creativity is still severely lacking. How pathetic." He said, trying to make the dark wizard lose his cool. He could feel Dean's analytical gaze on him, seeing something that he hadn't been able to see before in the young wizard.

"Why don't you come out and find out exactly how much creativity I have, Potter?" Rodolphus asked silkily. "It has been so long since I have last seen you. I was hoping that the aurors would send you when they discovered that Savage was killed."

Harry jolted at the revealed information.

"Were you the one who killed him?" He asked angrily.

"I wish I could take the credit," the dark wizard said. "But the credit would have to go to Mulciber." He filed the name away. So far, two big players that took part in the war were here in America and he was sure that there were more.

"Why use the lethifold?" Harry asked.

"Why, for amusement, of course. Muggles are such dumb creatures." He responded carelessly. "Running around like their heads are missing and not even close to discovering the truth."

Dean gritted his teeth in anger and Harry placed a hand on his arm in an attempt to soothe him. He was also angry at the dark wizard but they needed to keep a clear head.

"How is the Weasley matron, by the way? I have yet to repay her for murdering my wife."

"Your wife was a bitch." Harry replied back smoothly, nodding when he saw Dean motion him to keep the other man talking. Harry assumed that he was going to go around the wizard for the element of surprise. He casted the invisible shield around Dean, keeping him safe from most spells and bullets.

"Now, now, Potter," Harry was pleased to find there was a note of irritation behind the silky voice. "I do not appreciate you speaking ill of my wife in such a manner."

"Your wife was a whore." Harry spat out. "How you must have hated it as you stood on the sidelines while she willingly spread her legs for the snake bastard."

"_Reducto_."

Harry dove to the side in time of avoiding the curse, the crate he was hiding behind blasted into tiny bits.

"I will _not_ have you talk about my wife like that." He hissed in anger and threw a cutting spell towards where Harry was. Harry dodged the spell and threw one of his own at the same time Dean took his shot.

"_Expelliarmus_."

Rodolphus was sent flying, his wand flying out of his hand as he let out a cry of pain from the multiple of bullets piercing his body. He was so focused on Harry that he never noticed when the hunter had gone behind him. Recovering from his shock that the man was still standing, Harry wasted no time in casting the stunning charm at him but despite his wounds, Rodolphus was fast and the charm flew past him, hitting harmlessly against the wall.

Rodolphus growled in annoyance.

"It's a joke that you think bullets can harm me now." He said, a hand clasping around a more serious wound. "What are you waiting for? Your next meals have come to you." He called out and suddenly Harry saw a black shadowy being extract itself from the corner.

The lethifold.

"They don't attack humans that are awake." Harry said, but never the less kept an eye out for the creature.

"But this one does. They begin to mutate and adapt the longer they're here." Rodolphus replied before letting out an insane laughter. There was no doubt that Azkaban had left the man's mind not wholly intact. "Good luck, Potter. I'll be sure to see you around."

And he was gone with a pop. Without his wand.

Gripping his wand in a tightly, he summoned the dark wizard's wand to him before snapping it in half. He pocketed the pieces to later burn so that it would never be used again and then turned to face the situation at hand. He'll try to figure out the man's words later but if Rodolphus was telling the truth, then they were in a lot of trouble.

"Dean! Watch out for the lethifold!" Harry cried out in warning, running towards where he thought the hunter was. "Don't let it attach itself to you."

Harry tackled Dean just in time as the lethifold swooped down at the hunter, missing the man only inches away.

"I thought these things only eat people when they're sleeping?" Dean asked, getting up with Harry in tow.

"Blame the magic here." Harry replied, glancing around the abandoned building warily. The lethifold had gone back into hiding, probably waiting until they dropped their guards to attack.

"Can't you do that hoodoo you said that can repel them?"

The two were back to back, hoping to catch sight of the creature.

"It'd be useless if the lethifold is safely hidden in the shadows. We have to draw it out somehow."

"Dean? Harry?" They suddenly heard from the outside. Sam had arrived.

"Sammy!" Dean called out. "Don't come in here!" But his warning came a little too late as Sam was already in the entrance of the warehouse.

With his sharp eyes, Harry saw a piece of shadow leap from the top corner of the warehouse towards the unsuspecting figure of Sam Winchester and drawing up the happiest memory that he could think of, he shouted.

"_Expecto Patronum!_"

A silvery corporeal form of a stag erupted from the end of his wand and pranced towards the lethifold. Sam jumped out of the way as they all watched the stag took a hold of the lethifold in its mouth and to their surprise, Harry most of all, sucked it into its body.

There was a stunned silence that followed, the Winchesters never witnessing such a thing and Harry never seeing his patronus eat a dark creature like it was a slurpy. The stag gallantly walked back to Harry with its head held high and nudged him to pet it when it reached him.

"T-thank you." Harry said, petting it on its snout. It snorted at him lovingly before it vanished in a puff of smoke.

"What the hell was that? I-it _ate_ it." Dean said, slightly disturbed. Harry shrugged, uncertain himself.

"I'm not sure myself. It usually drives the creature off." Harry frowned. "It's like the magical flow here seems to be mutating and twisting my magic and it's forcing it to adapt to continue existing. The lethifold was the same way, according to Lestrange."

"Lestrange?" Sam asked, a little out of the loop.

"Masked weirdo in a dress." Dean supplied.

"Deatheater." Harry added, rubbing unconsciously at his scar.

"Whatever." Dean responded. "Deatheater, masked weirdo. Same person who's rooting for the demons. Just something else on the list that needs to be hunted." His stomach grumbled then in hunger.

"Now, I don't know about you two but I'm gonna go get me some grub." He said, walking off towards where he left his car with Sam and Harry following behind him. "By the way, Sammy. How'd you get here?"

Sam had the decency to look ashamed and blushed.

"I-I stole a car."

"That's my boy!" Dean said proudly, slapping a hand on Sam's back. Harry watched the two brothers in amusement, trailing behind them before Sam stopped and waited for him to catch up. He flashed him a smile as he walked next to Sam.

It was nice working with other people again.

…

**The Next Day**…

"Is it really gone?" Jamie asked when Harry told him the news. He ruffled the kid's hair.

"Yeah." He answered. Jamie was silent for a moment.

"My sister's never coming back, is she?" Was the sad question. "My mom said she's in a better place now but I miss her." Harry smiled sadly at the child.

"Remember what I said?" He asked, drawing the kid's attention. "Even though she's not here, she'll always be watching over you. As long as you remember her, she'll be alive in your heart."

"How do you know that?"

"My… my bestest friends in the whole wide world died about five years ago and every time I think about them, it feels like they're right next to me." Harry admitted, his heart twisting from grief. "I'll always miss them and I cherish the memories that I have of them."

"What if I forget?" Harry's heart felt like it was breaking as tears began rolling down Jamie's face.

"I don't think you'll ever forget your loved ones. You might not remember too clearly as you get older but you'll always have the great sense of love you've felt for her. You won't ever completely forget your sister."

Jamie sniffled, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

"I've got something for you, Jamie." Harry said, putting his hand in his pocket to pull the gift out.

"What is it?" The young boy asked curiously, his eyes turning puffy from his tears.

"Hold out your hand." He gently laid the beaded bracelet down onto Jamie's outstretched hand. "It's a protection bracelet because even though your sister isn't here anymore, she'd want to know that you'll be safe from danger."

"What about you?" Harry blinked at the question before he smiled softly at the child.

"Of course, me too."

He watched the kid slide the bracelet onto his wrist and stood up.

"I gotta go now but," he said when he saw the kid's eyes flash of disappointment and abandonment. "As long as you have that bracelet, I'll always be there for you. It'll be protecting you in place of your sister and me."

"Jamie!" a woman's voice called out in the distance. "It's time to go home!"

"Go on." Harry said when he saw the child hesitate.

Before leaving, Jamie threw himself at Harry and gave him a big hug.

"Thank you." He said softly before letting go of Harry. "Bye." He said before taking off towards where his mom was.

"Bye." Harry responded just as softly. He didn't feel he warranted the thank you. After all, they hadn't been able to get rid of the lethifold in time. Seven people were dead, devoured by the creature and the families were never going to be able to get closure. They were never going to know what exactly happened to their loved ones.

"Do you always eavesdrop on people or am I just special?" Harry asked, calling Dean out. The elder Winchester gave him a sheepish grin before walking out from behind the tree he was hiding behind.

"I didn't want to ruin the chick flick moment." He responded, rubbing his hand behind his head. "We gotta go. Sam's in the car waiting."

Harry briefly wondered why it wasn't Sam that was fetching him. It usually was.

"Okay." He said, beginning to walk in the direction that Dean's car was.

"Hey, Harry." Dean called out, and he stopped to look back at the Winchester, surprised that the man had used his name. "I just wanted to say that you're… all right, so we cool?"

Harry looked confused for a moment before his face broke out into a huge grin.

"Yeah, we're cool." He said before latching onto Dean. He wrapped his arms around the man, taking note that the man was just as fit as Sam. "Why, Dean. I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

He quickly let go of the man and raced off towards the car to tell Sam.

If he looked behind him at that very moment, he'd noticed a very flustered hunter he'd left behind in his wake.

...

**A/N**: Oh man, fight scenes are realllyyy hard to write. Harry and Dean's fight was short but it did managed to get across that Harry can _so_ get the upper hand even without magic.

As you can tell, the story isn't going to be following the timeline of Supernatural exactly but there'll be some events that will be similar. The main points, anyways.

Also, the description of the lethifold was found on a Harry Potter website. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), my imagination does not extend to being able to create new species that can eat people. =[

But anyway, I hoped you enjoy the chapter. =]


	6. 05

Chapter Five

Harry was annoyed. Not 'Trelawney predicting his death' annoyed but a more 'keeping secrets about him that can potentially kill him' annoyed. They were currently taking a break at the local bar after a successful hunt and while he was waiting for the drinks he ordered for Sam and himself, he was approached by an overly flirtatious man with a confidence swagger.

The words that were spewing from the man's mouth were bordering on almost ridiculous and the sexual innuendos, (oh, don't get him started on those!), they were more disturbing than tempting to the young wizard.

He wished the bartender would hurry up with his order already so he no longer had to listen to the guy who was now going into explicit detail on what he would do to Harry if they were alone. He rolled his eyes.

Honestly, did the man really believe he could pick someone up with those lines? He mentally frowned when he saw all the yearning looks that were directed over at them. Maybe he was missing something that the others were obviously seeing?

He looked over the man with a critical eye and then brushed the thought aside. They were all probably drunk. Now where was his order already?

"Well, how 'bout it baby?" The man asked, leaning in closer to Harry who suppressed the urge to wrinkle his nose in disgust. "How about we go play house? You can be the door and I'll slam you."

Ugh, what a joke.

"Look," Harry began, fed up with the lame pickup lines. "I'm not-"

He was cut off when he felt someone throw their arm around his shoulder, pulling him close to their body. He felt his eye twitch in irritation. Comments he can handle, but if people think that they get 'friendly' with him without his consent, they had another thing coming. He glared up in preparation of tossing the offender on his ass but his narrowed green eyes quickly widened.

"Dean!" He cried out in surprise. The last time he saw the hunter was when he claimed he was going to get laid tonight and went off to flirt with the hot 'chicks' that were eyeing him from their table. Harry had commented that it was probably the roll of cash that he had won at the pool tables that they were interested in. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, babe, you were taking so long getting our drinks, I thought I'd come over here to keep you company." Dean said, his face morphing from a challenging expression to a look of pure adulation when he switched to gaze down upon Harry.

Harry felt his heart speed up at the gaze and felt his breath hitch. What was the man doing? Harry wondered briefly, all thoughts of the troublesome admirer vanishing from his mind. The two were swept up into their own world; vivid emerald green eyes locking onto hazel green eyes.

"If you were already taken, you should've said so." The ignored man muttered, skulking away while trying to soothe his bruised ego. Indeed his prey was incredibly eye catching but he wasn't going to risk his life for him. The boyfriend looked like he was ready to snap him in half.

He took a swig of his beer. The night was still young, he thought, regaining his confident air. He turned his eye to a new prey that expressively gave him a disgusted look, in which he took as an open invitation to sit down next to them and try the lines he had learned from an internet pick up lines site.

To the credit of Dean and Harry, neither even noticed when the other man left. They were much more caught up in each other. Harry felt Dean's fingers clutch onto his shoulder a little tighter, unconsciously drawing him even nearer to the man. He breathed in the unique scent that could only be identified as Dean's. It smelled of gun powder, sweat, and something that made Harry's senses tingle deliciously.

He wondered faintly what it would be like to kiss the man and as if sensing Harry's thoughts, Dean's eyes darkened from want. Almost unconsciously, he began to slowly lower his face towards the awaiting Harry.

"Your drinks." The bartender suddenly said, snapping the two of them back into reality. Harry jerked back away from Dean as Dean's fingers loosened their grip on his shoulder.

Realizing what had almost happened, Harry's cheeks turned into a full blown red and he turned away quickly to pick up the drinks.

"Thanks." He murmured, faintly missing the heat that was emitted from Dean. He turned back around to face the older man with the drinks and a sudden awkward air gathered around them, both not knowing what to say.

Dean coughed lightly after a second and shoved his hands in his jacket pocket.

"Um… yeah. I, uh," he cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. "T-that was just because the guy was being a total dick so I thought I'd lend you a hand."

Harry tried to bit back the disappointment he could feel starting to swell inside, confused on why he was disappointed at all. The two were only beginning to be on friendly terms, insults were still thrown at each other but it didn't have the usual bite that it had weeks prior.

He had found himself at times staring at the man unconsciously but who wouldn't? He had eyes after all and though he would never say it outright, the man was a great eye-candy to have around.

The man was built in a way that was as close to perfection as one can get. He was rugged as he was handsome. Adding to that, he can practically ooze with sex appeal when he called upon it. Not that Harry has even been on the receiving end of it, but from what he saw, he could understand why women would be taken in by his charms.

He would never admit it though. He feared that it would overinflate the man's ego to the point that there'll be no living with him until he would be forced to get a needle to pop it.

"Oh," Harry managed out, a weak smile appearing on his face. Of course, there'd be no way Dean would be interested in him. He should just be glad that they were finally at the point where they trusted each other. "Thanks. That bloke just didn't know when to stop and his lines," Harry's nose wrinkled in distaste. "Do they even _work_?"

Dean chuckled a bit, leading him back to where Sam was waiting for them who was waiting at the table with an amused expression on his face.

"Only if they're used by the right people." Dean said and Harry giggled.

"Why do I get the feeling that you're not one of the 'right people'?" He teased, sporting a cheeky grin. He tried to ignore how Dean's hand would brush against his lower back, believing that the man was just trying to make sure he didn't gain any more unwanted admirers by sticking close.

Dean frowned.

"Of course, I am." He said. "I'm irresistible. The chicks can't get enough of me."

"They probably can't get enough because you don't last long enough." Harry said, poking Dean in the side playfully.

"Hey!" Dean cried out in protest. "I am fully capable of satisfying my partner."

"If that makes you feel better at night, mate." Harry said, patting Dean consolingly on the arm. He laughed at the look Dean was wearing before bounding over to Sam to hand him his drink. "Here, Sam! Sorry for the wait."

Sam chuckled as he accepted the drink, thanking the wizard. Harry noticed the two brothers sharing a look and knew that they were communicating silently. He watched in interest at the emotions that were displayed on the brothers' faces.

Sam raised an amused brow at Dean who suddenly scowled and turned away; his eyes changing from the playful sparkle that was there when he was talking to Harry to a frustrated look.

"Well, I'm gonna go have me some fun." He said, walking away suddenly towards a couple of women at a table across the bar.

Harry bit his lip, his brows furrowing in concern.

"What was that about?" He asked Sam, confused at Dean's quick one-eighty turn of attitude.

"It's nothing, Harry." Was the response but he could see the slight worry in the youngest Winchester's hazel-brown eyes. He wanted to continue to push the subject, but he decided to drop it for now.

There was another pressing question that he felt needed to be addressed more.

"Are you all right, Sam?" He asked, his voice tinged with concern. "You seem, I don't know, weighed down lately."

Sam sighed, taking a drink from his bottle. He looked reluctant to talk about it.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it, but I was just worried about you."

"No, it's not that." He ran a hand through his hair. "Let's go outside to talk."

Harry nodded his agreement and discarded his half-empty beer while Sam finished his. Making their way out the bar, they headed towards the Impala where they both took a seat on the car's hood. The air was chilly and Harry shivered from the cold. He wrapped his jacket tighter around his body as he waited for Sam to speak.

"Do you ever feel like no matter how many people you save, it still isn't enough?" Sam asked, his voice giving away the vulnerability that he was feeling. He was staring down at his hands that were tightly clutched together, his elbows leaning against his knees. The way that he positioned his body was almost as if he was forcing himself not to curl into himself.

"All too well," Harry said softly. Back in the war, it felt like no matter how hard he tried, lives were lost. It didn't matter that he saved thousands of others; he had felt that it still wasn't enough. His precious people were taken from him despite his efforts and he had felt that if he tried a little more, or if he was just a little faster, they could've been saved.

It was actually Severus who had saved him from drowning in despair and regret.

"Get over yourself, Potter," the man had practically snarled at the weary hero of the Wizarding World after catching him one too many times in one of his funks. "How just like your father. Arrogant and so utterly foolish. Moping about like a half wit, they died with honor and you're just dragging it through the dirt with your imbecilic gestures." The man had continued on with his tirade.

"This may hurt your overinflated ego and pride, Potter, but you are not a god. You cannot save everyone and you're just insulting them by living your life like a dementor had sucked the soul from your body. Get off your high pedestal, Potter. You're not doing anyone favors."

It had taken Harry a while later to come to terms with the guilt he felt but as harsh as the man had been, it had helped him incredibly to continue on with his life.

"Is this about the hunt?" He asked tentatively.

They had just finished another hunt, a regular old haunting with a blood thirsty ghost, which Harry had found slightly disturbing. He was used to the ghosts in Hogwarts, that although did find it amusing at times to frighten the students, they were generally non-aggressive and did not go around murdering every single person that crossed their paths.

Harry shuddered to think what would have happened if Voldemort had an arsenal of the deadly creatures that seem to dwell here in America. The damage would have doubled or tripled, he was sure.

Burning the corpse of the ghost was also a new experience for Harry, and he couldn't help but feel a bit of vindictive pleasure as it burned after all the grief it had caused to the innocent people.

Sam didn't answer but instead sighed deeply. Harry waited patiently for Sam to collect his thoughts.

"It's just…" Sam paused and Harry leaned against him slightly to offer his silent support. "It's just I couldn't save that woman and if I was only just faster, I could've…" He trailed off. Harry bit his lip.

"Sam, that kind of thinking," Harry began. "It can drive you crazy, if you let it. Believe me, the guilt can take over your life and drown you in the sorrow and regret. You begin to live like you're dead and that's not going to help anyone, especially yourself."

"How do you get rid of the feeling?"

"You can never get rid of it entirely. It's what makes us humans." He said. "It helps that we accept the fact that we can't save everyone. We hold reverence for those we couldn't but who we do manage to save, we should celebrate it. We can never forget that we are alive and we owe it to our loved ones to live our life. It's proof of our continued existence."

"But I have to save them. I should've found a way to save them." Harry felt his heart sympathize for Sam at his agonized tone.

"Sam, I understand what you're feeling. Hell, I've been through these exact same feelings when I was seventeen and it would be hypocritical of me to tell you, you should stop but it can drive you crazy, Sam. It almost drove me insane if it wasn't for my ex-professor."

"You don't understand, Harry." Sam said, frustrated. "It's just, the more people I save, the more I can change."

"What do you mean?" He asked, confused.

"Every person I save, I feel like I can change my destiny. The demons have plans for me, Harry, and my dad told Dean," he paused. "My dad told Dean that if he couldn't save me, he'd have to kill me."

Harry felt his blood run cold at Sam's admittance.

"What do you mean by he'd have to kill you?" He asked quietly, anger starting to flow within his veins.

"It means that if I start going dark, Dean's going to have to kill me and I've accepted that." Harry couldn't contain his anger anymore and he lashed out any way he could. He shoved at the hulking figure of Sam, knocking the man off the hood and onto the ground.

"W-what?" Sam asked, clearly surprised at Harry's actions.

"You are an idiot, Sam Winchester!" Harry growled, standing up so he could tower over the sprawled figure of Sam. "So just because demons have plans for you, you think that'll make you go dark? It's about choice, Sam! If it came true every single time that people said I was going to go dark or die, I'd be either a thousand times over! And what kind of brother are you forcing your brother to kill you when you have the will to choose what side you want to be on? Do you even _know_ what that would do to him? Are you just going to give in?"

Sam gaped at him in surprise and he felt his anger abate slightly. He sighed and kneeled down before Sam so that they'd be face to face.

"With your big heart, Sam, there's no doubt in my mind that you'll never go dark."

"What if I do?"

Harry smiled gently.

"With me and Dean around? I don't think we'll ever let you go dark." Harry said. "And if and that's a big if, you start straddling the line, you can be sure that we'll be there to smack you straight."

Sam cracked a smile.

"Don't you mean set me straight?"

Harry waved off the suggestion.

"Smacking you straight will get the point across much better, Sam Winchester." He poked the man's head playfully. "Speaking from experience, we hard-headed people usually need a brutal smacking to set us right."

Sam chuckled.

"And I have no doubt that you can beat me down."

"You better believe it!" He said, winking at the hunter audaciously. "Or else you'll find out the hard way like Dean." His expression turned serious then. "But really Sam, we'll figure this out. You aren't going to turn evil and become a mass murdering nutcase as long as you don't lose sight of who you are and what you want. After all, I can be considered an expert on this; I did deal with one for the first seventeen years of my life."

"Thanks." Sam said, and Harry grinned.

"Aww… you don't have to thank me."

Leaning against Sam, the cold didn't seem to bother him as much and they descended into silence, enjoying each other's company as they gazed upon the stars. It was a good thirty minutes before the peace was disturbed.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Dean asked, making the two on the ground look up at him. He had a sort of weird expression on his face whilst he studied the two.

"No," Harry said before a smirk graced his face. "What are you doing here? Did the lonely drunken women in the bar reject your company for the night?" He hopped up onto his feet to peer up at Dean with soulful eyes.

"It's okay, Dean. It just that you're losing your touch."

"What? No!" Dean denied vehemently. "I just wasn't feeling it tonight, so what do you say? Let's go hit the hay, huh? Huh?"

Harry was a bit confused at Dean's behavior and looked over at Sam who shrugged, getting up as well.

"All right."

The best word to describe the ride back to the motel would be tense. Picking up that Dean wasn't in a good mood, they remained silent; the only sound filling the air was the music playing from the radio. They exited the car once he parked and as Harry was about to head up the stairs towards their room, he felt Dean grab his elbow to stop him in his tracks.

"Hey, Sam? Why don't you go on ahead first and me and Harry will be up in a couple of minutes."

The confusion that Harry was feeling seemed to multiply when he saw Sam give his brother a knowing look before heading up by himself. They stood in silence until they heard the telling signs of a door opening and closing, signaling that Sam had entered the room. It was then that Harry decided to speak up.

"What did you want to talk about?" Harry asked curiously, watching as the oldest Winchester rub the back of his head in a sign of unease.

"So, you and Sammy," he started, sounding extremely uncomfortable. "Are you interested in him? Ah, that sounded lame." He muttered the last part to himself to the amusement of Harry's.

"Interested?"

"Yeah. What do you think of him?" Harry was unsure where this was going, his face reflecting his perplexity. It wasn't helping that Dean was staring at him with a look of consternation.

"He's a good friend," Harry said slowly, trying to figure out where Dean was coming from. "If you're afraid that I'm going to hurt Sam, I thought we already-"

"No. No, it's not that." Dean said, his tensed shoulders suddenly easing up. He grinned down at Harry who was extremely puzzled at this point.

"Then what-" Harry found himself cut off again when a pair of lips sealed itself over his own. Wide emerald eyes stared into mischievous hazel-green as Dean deepened the kiss, running his tongue experimentally over Harry's lips.

Unconsciously, he opened his mouth to allow the other man's tongue entrance and his hands reached up to grasp at the older Winchester's leather jacket. Tendrils of desire slowly replaced the shock and he raised himself on his toes to get closer to the man.

He felt a hand make it way to the small of his back, pressing him into Dean's body and the other hand tangled itself in his hair to be able to manipulate the kiss. Harry moaned into the kiss, heat beginning to coil below his stomach.

He arched against Dean, making the man growl slightly when he unintentionally rubbed against the man's erection.

Merlin, can the man kiss! Harry faintly thought as they slowly drew apart. Their breathing was harsh from the lack of air and Harry shivered slightly from the loss of heat.

"W-what was that about?" Harry asked after his lungs regained the air that it needed to function properly. He looked over at Dean who looked like he was beating himself up mentally.

"Nothing." The man said before heading up the stairs.

Harry gaped after the man in stunned silence before snapping out of it and following after the man. It was obvious that it was _not_ nothing. It was something all right and Harry made a discontent noise.

"It was not nothing!" He voiced his thoughts aloud. "You kissed me and I know you enjoyed it." He added, recalling the erection that was poking him against his stomach.

"You were imagining things," Dean said gruffly, opening the door to their motel room. "It was nothing." He repeated and Harry just settled by glowering at the man.

Sam was staring at the both of them in bewilderment from his bed. He had known Dean had been jealous of Harry's attentions focusing on him but what did his brother do to make Harry practically hiss like an angry cat.

"What-"

"Go to sleep, Sam." Dean said, not even letting him complete his sentence. Harry huffed in annoyance and walked over to backpack to gather some clothes to change into for the night. Without another glance at the eldest Winchester brother, he made his way towards the bathroom where he proceeded to shower and change.

By the time he was out, Dean was asleep. Pretending or not, he didn't care while Sam was sitting there reading, waiting for Harry to emerge from the bathroom.

"What happened?" Sam asked Harry, his eyes sparkling with concern. Harry sighed and got onto the bed to lie next to the sitting Sam.

"Tomorrow." Was his answer, and Sam nodded.

"All right."

"You don't mind if I sleep in the same bed, do you?" Harry questioned, throwing an arm across his eyes. "Not in the mood to transfigure any furniture." He lifted his arms slightly to give Sam doe-like eyes. "I promise to not molest you in your sleep."

Sam chuckled, used to Harry's antics and threw a pillow into his face.

"Get some sleep."

And with a sigh, Harry fell asleep while listening to the rhythm of breathing and rustling pages. He dreamt of Ron and Hermione that night when they were still students in Hogwarts, happier and less baffling times.

…

The next morning, Dean had stuck to his word and acted like nothing had happened. And if Harry's lips still didn't tingle from the kiss last night, he would've almost believed that he had dreamt it. As it were, the man was just trying to drive Harry utterly insane by confusing him completely.

While they were waiting for Dean to finish up in the shower, Harry had told the curious Sam what had happened last night with as little details as possible. He didn't want to traumatize the youngest Winchester after all.

"Do you like Dean, Harry?"

Harry turned cherry red at the question and fidgeted under Sam's stare. Dean had essentially asked the same question last night except it was about Sam, so why did he feel so flustered when it was about Dean?

It hit him then and his eyes widened dramatically in horror when the answer came to him. Sam was enjoying the apparent horror that was spreading across the youngest of the three's face and his face broke out into a grin.

"Should I take that as a yes?" Harry's widened eyes turned towards Sam before he groaned in dismay.

"Why?" He asked. "Of all the people I had to like, why'd it have to be a dick?" He asked almost forlornly, making Sam laugh. Don't get him wrong. Dean was a great brother, a good friend, and someone you can depend on to have your back, but the man _could_ be a jerk at times.

Love makes you blind, and Harry wasn't exactly in love yet.

"He's not that bad."

Harry scowled.

"He kissed me and is now pretending that it never happened."

"Dean has his own ways of resolving his issues. You have to push him." Sam advised. "He likes you, too, if you haven't noticed." From the look on Harry's face, he supposed that he hadn't.

Harry's face showed his incredulousness.

"He does?"

"He does." Sam confirmed. He should feel like he was betraying his brother's trust but though the two were always fighting and insulting each other, they looked the most carefree when doing so. Dean looked happy, more than Sam had ever witnessed in the last year or so and if Harry could bring that spark into Dean's eyes, he believed that it was worth it.

He trusted Harry to not break his brother's heart.

"What do I do now?" Harry bemoaned, hiding his face in his hands. He realized that he was over dramatizing the whole thing but he never expected to develop a crush on the wayward man. Admire his fine physique, yes, but not this!

"Do you want this to go anywhere?"

He thought hard about it. He remembered the man's kiss and his body tingled from pleasure. He was attracted to the man, that was a sure thing, and despite his initial horror and reluctance, he found that underneath he did want to see where it could lead to.

He nodded slowly before frowning.

"But the problem is, Dean seems intent on erasing the event entirely from his mind."

"Oh, he can try but I don't think he'll be successful." Sam said with a smirk. "He's been in the shower for almost an hour now."

Sam burst out laughing when Harry's cheeks flushed a dark red upon understanding the implication. He felt like he hadn't laughed in the longest of times and felt the load of burden that he felt resting on his shoulders lighten a bit. He realized then that Harry not only has a positive impact on his brother, but also on himself.

**A/N**: And another chapter is done. This chapter was mostly to further develop the characters and their interactions with one another. Dean… not so much because it's mostly from Harry's view and he's a bit clueless about what the man truly wants from him. =P

The words that Sam spoke were taken from Season 02x12... I think. The one titled 'Playthings' and with a drunk Sammy. =]

Here's a tiny (extremely tiny) little teaser of the next chapter. Haven't written it out yet; the ideas are floating around in my head until I manage to get it down but here you go:

"_Get your filthy hands off of him, you son of a bitch!" Dean shouted angrily as he tugged angrily at the ropes that tied him to the wall. The Dean look-a-like chuckled as he ran a finger down Harry's face. Harry moved his face as far away as he could from his position and glared at the offending appendage._

"_Don't you mean 'my hands'? We are, after all, the same person." _

"_I swear to God I will fucking kill you if you do anything to hurt him." Dean growled in unrestrained fury. _


	7. 06

Chapter Six

Harry was really beginning to doubt Sam's words.

For the past week now, Dean hadn't given Harry any indication that he was interested in the small wizard in the romantic sense. Hell, he acted like the kiss never took place at all! The man still had his witty sense of humor and teased Harry but whenever he tried to bring up the subject of the kiss, Dean would brush it aside with a comment and that crooked grin of his.

After the tenth failed attempt to get the elder Winchester to talk to him about it, Harry had given up; believing that the only reason why Dean wouldn't want to talk about it was because the man had regretted the action.

At the moment, Dean was scanning the newspaper in hopes of finding a new hunt and it was clear that the Winchester was more than a little nervous that Harry might insist that they _talked_. Harry huffed in irritation and resorted to crossing his arms in front of his chest and gazing out the window to show that he wasn't going to be bothering him.

He heard a soft sigh of relief escape from the man across from him and felt a small sting of hurt at the sound. It just reaffirmed the belief that Dean was indeed regretting ever kissing Harry. He slouched a bit in his seat, keeping an eye out for the tall form of the younger hunter who he had grown rather close to in the past week since Dean was being an arse.

To the consternation of the two, Sam had left them alone together, promising that he wouldn't be long from whatever he was going to do. At first, Harry was going to attempt to draw the older man into a conversation but Dean immediately turn his attention to their young and blonde waitress, leaving Harry with the urge to stab the man with the fork that lay in front of him.

A small grin replaced his pout when he saw Sam approaching and he uncrossed his arms as he sat up. He felt Dean's eyes focus on him but he chose to ignore him, still hurt by the man's reaction. He was tired of being the one who was always being disregarded by the Winchester.

"Sam!" He called out to get his attention when he saw the young hunter looking around the diner in hopes of spotting them. He was rewarded a small smile and a nod for his efforts as Sam made his way towards them. He made room for the younger hunter to sit on his side of the booth, briefly noting the tension that had developed in Dean's jaw line before it vanished.

He was a bit confused at the reaction. The man's mood changed quicker than a Streeler changes color.

"What you got there, Sammy?" Dean asked, his eyes curiously looking at the paper bag that Sam had carried in with him.

"This? I thought it would be the best thing to get Harry a cell phone." Sam answered, flashing a shy smile towards Harry. "You know, in case we get separated or something."

"You didn't have to do that, Sam," Harry said. "I could've bought my own." He bit his lip, offering, "I can pay you back."

"You don't have to do that." Sam declined. "We're friends." He handed the phone to Harry who took it reluctantly after receiving the puppy-dog look. Once in his hand, he looked at it dubiously.

"You know, I don't know how to use one." Seeing the incredulous look on Sam's face, he laughed. "We don't really use electronics where I come from." He explained lightly. There was a fleeting moment of confusion warring on Sam's face before understanding sunk in.

"Oh, OH!" Sam exclaimed, smiling sheepishly. "I can show you, if you want."

Before Harry could answer, Dean cleared his throat loudly; bringing their attention from each other to the older who looked faintly annoyed. Hazel-green eyes locked onto emerald green for a brief second before flickering back to the folded newspaper.

"I think I found us a hunt." Dean said gruffly, laying the newspaper out in the middle so all of them can see. He had circled three deaths in the obituaries section and now he was tapping at them. "Three deaths. From what I found in the newspaper, they were all beaten to death." There was a brief moment of silent.

"As horrible as that sounds, Dean," Sam began. "How does that pertain to what we do?"

"No forced entries, for one and the only fresh fingerprints that the police could find on the murder weapons were from relatives or friends." He paused for a second. "Dead relatives or friends. Like five years or more past their expiration date."

"So we got ourselves a hunt." Sam said, sighing.

"Yeah," Dean then turned his attention to the waitress. "Can we get our order to go instead?"

…

"Do you need a boost there, shorty?" Dean teased Harry when he saw the short statured wizard pout at how easy the tallest Winchester had jumped the high gate.

Harry stuck his tongue out at the man in response.

Looking up at the gate, Harry frowned at how high up it was. Architects should be more considerate of people like him who needed to break in and enter private estates like these. Don't get him wrong; he could've apparated in, but he usually refrained from doing so when there were more conventional ways. Plus, when working alongside paranoid hunters, it's usually a good idea to _not_ startle them. From Harry's first impression of hunters, they tend to shoot first and ask questions later.

A bit embarrassed to ask the man for a boost, he decided to pull a leaf out of Malfoy's book to save a little of his dignity and pride.

"A boost? Only plebeians needs boost." He said, sniffing haughtily. "What I need is for _you _to be my step ladder." Dean chuckled at his snooty act.

"Right away, your majesty." He mocked, in which Harry gave him a grin.

"I rather like the sound of that coming from you." He teased and squeaked in surprise when he found himself lifted into the air. He grabbed the top of the gate and started to pull himself up, ignoring the way Dean's fingers seemed to linger on his hips.

He hopped over and landed in a crouch, moving quickly out of the way so Dean could get over as well. Sam was already ahead, checking for signs of threats that could be waiting for them in the private estate.

This was their last stop for the day, having already checked out the two easier accessed house and apartment of the other two victims. The crime scenes were horrific, neither of them had shown that the assailant had been kind to the unfortunate victims.

All the blood had caused Harry to remember the more dark times and he couldn't control the shudder that went through him as the two Winchesters went looking for any clues that the creature could've left behind. Taking in the scenes, Harry knew without a doubt that the creature was a cruel being; inflicting unnecessary pain and hurt to others and probably taking pleasure from doing so. The thought doubling his determination to catch it.

Trekking up the long driveway towards the main house, Sam handed Harry a flashlight. They would need it since they were quickly losing light due to the setting sun.

Once they approached the front door, Dean made quick work of the lock and pushed the door so that it would quietly swing open. Words were unneeded as they entered the house; Dean ahead of the group, Harry coming in second, and Sam in third with the video camera on night vision. They were to inspect all the rooms in hopes of finding anything similar to the other two homes they visited earlier.

Walking towards the dining room, Harry noticed blood trail on the ground and imagined that the man had probably tried to crawl away to safety from his attacker. He clenched his flashlight tightly in one hand and his wand in the other and peered around the room with a critical eye.

The adrenaline was pumping through his veins and his instincts were all but screaming at him to keep his guard up. Feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand up, he whirled around and shined the flashlight ahead of him, a curse on the tip of his tongue.

"Whoa, it's just me." Dean said, hands in the air. He smirked at Harry. "Is little Harry getting a little jumpy?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. I don't get my rocks off at a murder scene," he said drily. "And I wouldn't call me _little_. From what others say, I'm just the right _size_." When he realized what he said, he nearly groaned aloud. The man was becoming a bad influence on him. He shook his head to get himself back on track.

"We have a job to do." He pointed out, poking the grinning Dean in the stomach.

"Right." The Winchester responded, clearing his throat. "Let's go." Flashing a tiny smile up at the hunter, Harry walked out of the dining room and headed towards the living room where Sam was located.

"Did you find anything?"

"Blood trail where the man dragged himself." Harry said, eyeing the large splatter of blood that Sam was standing next to. His mood was quickly dampened by the cruel reality that was in front him. "Is this where he was found?"

His question was answered with a nod.

"Do you know what it is?" He asked, not surprised when the elder Winchester appeared so close to him that their arms were touching each other. He had sensed when the man had entered the room. Unbidden, a small bud of hope bloomed inside his chest that maybe Dean _was_ interested in him after all.

"We know it can't be a ghost since it's leaving fingerprints." Sam answered, frowning in thought. "Did you find anything, Dean?"

"Nothing upstairs," Dean reported from beside Harry. "I say it's about time we head back."

Heading towards the front door, Harry suddenly felt an ominous feeling coming from behind and found himself once again whirling around with his wand in hand.

"_Stupefy_!" He said, sending the red light flying towards his target. The shadowy figure dodged the curse with unnatural ease and leapt at him, snarling in anger. Before he could send off another curse, the figure was upon him and he went down with a loud crash.

The air was pushed out of his lungs when his back met the ground. Peering up at his assailant, he was shocked to find it the recently deceased owner of the house with what appeared to be a knife in his hands. He wore a sadistic grin on his face that was eerily too wide on his face, almost to the point of it splitting.

If Harry himself hadn't seen the pictures of the deceased man, he wasn't sure what he would've done but knowing that the thing on top of him couldn't be the man, not to mention not human, the shock was quickly replaced by the training that was imbedded in him and he began struggling to get the man off of him. They grappled for a bit and Harry successfully managing to dislodge the man, kicking him hard in the stomach.

"Harry!" He heard Sam called out to him in alarm but he couldn't afford to lose his concentration.

With his arm now free, he swung it hard into the man's face and it hit its mark with a loud crack, the force sending the supposed deceased man staggering. When the man looked back at Harry with the still overly stretched grin on his face, Harry tried to control the horror he felt when he saw the skin was practically ripped from the skin, revealing the hideous face that dwelled beneath it.

A gun shot rang out and the creature cried out in pain as it clutched its arm. It glared at the older hunter hatefully who still had his gun raised and with one last lingering look at Harry, it took off running; crashing through the window and escaping into the night.

"Dammit!" Dean cursed, running over to the broken window while Sam went over to check on Harry.

"Are you okay?" He asked worriedly and Harry nodded in confirmation.

"What was that thing?" Harry questioned, trying to regain the breath that he lost back into his lungs. "I-its skin, it ripped off."

"Shapeshifter." Dean answered, looking disgusted. "It can shift into anyone it wants; taking on their appearance and vocal patterns."

"Which would explain the fingerprints." Sam said, helping Harry stand up. Harry grimaced at the slimy feeling that was left on his hand and shuddered when he recalled what happened to cause it to be there in first place. He reluctantly wiped it on his pants, unable to stand the sensation of it on his hand any longer.

"How do you kill it?"

"Silver." Was the reply. "That's the only thing that'll kill 'em."

The three of them stood in silence, each contemplating on what to do now.

"Well, I say we go back to the motel." Dean proposed. "We don't know where the thing could've gone or its motive. We can research the ugly son of a bitch and find out its next movement." He glared at the broken window where it had escaped from. "Man, I _hate_ shapeshifters. Last time we dealt with one, I got convicted as a murderer!"

…

**The Next Day**

Harry resisted the urge to glare at the flirting form of Dean Winchester as he took a generous amount of time to pay compliments to the waitress who had brought them their to-go order. Rolling his eyes at the display, he chose to exit the diner so that he'd no longer have to watch or hear the words that they were exchanging. Why'd he have to develop a crush on a jerk like that, he'd never know.

Unknowingly, the being named Trouble was snickering just a few inches above his head.

Taking a seat on the trunk of the Impala, Harry's eyes skimmed his surroundings in a bored manner. He wondered if Sam, who was currently back at the motel researching and hacking away, was having a better time than he was. He glanced back at the older hunter's outline and frowned.

Anything was better than this, he concluded. It was one thing to have a crush on a man who was hot and cold to him, but it was another that the man insists on flirting with other people, especially women, in front of him.

His thoughts were cut off abruptly when he saw a shadowed form begin to emerge from the dark alley. What the…

"Padfoot?" He murmured softly in surprise when his eyes adjusted and saw an outline of an abnormally large dog. It stuck to the shadows but what struck a chord in Harry were its eyes.

Sparkling grey eyes were looking back at him; shining with an emotion that could only be described as yearning.

"Padfoot!" Harry cried out, jumping off the trunk to race across the street. He was aware that Sirius had fallen into the veil long ago, but the thought that his godfather could have possibly once again pulled off a feat that was deemed impossible over rid any other thought.

The massive dog had taken off running when Harry had came sprinting towards it and it weaved itself in and out of the alleyway, always sticking to the shadows.

"Wait!" Harry yelled, confused on why it would be running away. There was no way he could've mistaken. The form was identical to Sirius's animagus and above all else, the eyes alone were that of Sirius Black.

Losing sight of the running dog, Harry stopped and looked around. His heart was pounding from anticipation and he scanned the area in hopes of spotting it once more.

"Padfoot?" He called out, his throat clogging up by what seemed to be his heart. Not seeing or hearing anything in a sign that he wasn't alone, he resisted the urge to sob. Was his mind playing tricks on him? Or did he really see Sirius?

Either way, it was a cruel. It was stupid for getting his hopes up and tried to shake himself from the grief he was feeling but to no avail. The never healed scab was ripped open once more and the waves of lost swept over him.

So caught up in his emotions, by the time he realized that he wasn't alone, he was knocked unconscious by a blow to the back of the head, sending him spiraling into the realm of darkness.

…

Harry did not know how long he was out but when he woke, he let out a small groan as the painful lump in the back of his head made itself known. He sat up slowly, disoriented and was aware that someone was helping him up.

Bleary green eyes looked up to find a worried Dean staring down at him and he realized that the man was talking.

"-ry? Are you okay?" Dean asked, helping Harry up slowly. He was a bit unsteady on his feet and he clutched onto the man's forearm to keep himself balanced.

"Y-yeah," he murmured dazedly. "What happened?"

"The shapeshifter." The Winchester replied angrily. "It took your form and tried to…" He broke off with a grim look. "It doesn't matter what it tried to do. It's dead now."

Harry wanted to ask what the shapeshifter tried to do but seeing the look at the man was sporting, he decided that it wasn't the time. Also, his head wasn't exactly happy with him at the moment.

"W-where's my wand?"

"I got it. The son of a bitch had it in his pocket." Harry held the back of his head, wincing at the pain it brought on when he put pressure on it.

"W-we should go then." Harry said, swaying slightly as he tried to walk on his own.

"Oh no, you don't. I think you have a concussion." Dean responded, pulling Harry back towards him. One of his arms snaked around to grab a hold of Harry just below his rib cage and the other tilted his head up so that their eyes met.

"When I found out that the shapeshifter had taken you…" He trailed off and Harry lifted a hand tentatively to cup Dean's face.

"Well, you saved me." Harry said, blushing at his words. He felt silly for saying such a thing. He wasn't some princess that needed a prince charming to save him. Dean grinned down at him.

"Yeah, my own damsel in distress." He teased, leaning down to kiss Harry on his lips. Upon contact, Harry froze. His pounding heart that was caused by Dean's proximity seemed to stop and without further ado, he brought his knee up and slammed it into Dean's private parts.

He pushed the older man away and wiped his lips with the back of his hand in disgust, glaring at the figure that was bent over from the pain.

"You're not Dean." He said, staggering away from the imposter. He made to run towards the door but before he could get far, he was caught and thrown towards the wall. He gasped for air when he bounced off the hard surface and forced himself to stand up again, leaning against the wall for support.

"It's too bad that you realized that." The imposter said; Dean's hazel-green eyes shining with grim disappointment down at Harry. "We could've been happy together."

"I'd never be happy with a coldblooded murderer like you." Harry responded, narrowing his eyes at the creature. Its face hardened in anger.

"Those people deserved it." It snarled, twisting Dean's face into an ugly expression of contempt. Harry didn't want to see such a look mar the older hunter's face and turned away, his eyes desperately searching for an escape route. The pounding of his head wasn't decreasing any time soon and he struggled to focus.

The imposter then said something in which Harry couldn't make out, and he found himself dodging away when he saw the fake Dean come closer to him. He kicked out at the man, his motion sluggish at best and with a calculated punch from the imposter, he soon found himself once again sinking into the arms of darkness.

He was really starting to hate it there.

…

Waking up the second time around, Harry found himself tied securely in a chair. Struggling weakly with the ropes, he found that they were tied on tightly and weren't going to come loose any time soon.

He looked up when he felt another presence in the room and gasped softly when he saw the unconscious figure of Dean who was tied to the wall. Blood seemed to be seeping from a wound in Dean's side and he noted with worry that it was in massive amounts.

The bastard had shot Dean.

"Dean!" He called out softly, his eyes darting around the room to make sure that they were indeed alone. "Dean!" He repeated again, louder this time. His struggles against the ropes that bind him to the chair began anew and he tried to draw his magic in to aid him but a sudden dizziness swept through him that left him feeling nauseous.

"Dean, wake up!" He said, worry beginning to cloud his mind. When he heard the small grunt signaling that the man was waking, the relief he felt was palpable and he pulled at the ropes that tied his wrists to the armrest until he felt it turning raw. "Dean!"

"W-what?" Was the answer as Dean was slowly coming around. "Harry!" He cried out when the fog cleared from his mind. "Are you all-" He was cut off when the sound of a door opened and they both turned to look over at the Dean look-alike who was sporting a grin.

"It seems my two guests have awoken." It said, walking into the room with its eyes only focused on Harry. There was no mistaken the glint of lust in its eyes as it circled around Harry.

Harry glared back at it defiantly.

"My poor little Harry," it crooned softly as it touched the lump on the back of his head. He resisted the urge to flinch, not willing to show it any signs of weakness. "It hurts me to see you like this."

"Get your filthy hands off of him, you son of a bitch!" Dean shouted angrily as he tugged angrily at the ropes that tied him to the wall. The Dean look-a-like chuckled as he ran a finger down Harry's face. Harry moved his face as far away as he could from his position and glared at the offending appendage.

"Don't you mean 'my hands'? We are, after all, the same person." It leant down to lick Harry's earlobe and he twisted his head away, disgusted at the creature's actions. "I know all your desires and fears. I got to tell you one thing though, Deany boy, I wouldn't mind carrying out the things that run through your mind."

"I swear to God I will fucking kill you if you do anything to him." Dean growled in unrestrained fury, pulling at the ropes that kept him restrained.

"Hurt him?" The creature looked genuinely surprised and then angry. "It's funny that you say that. Afraid of what your dead daddy would have said to you if he ever found out that you were lusting after the very thing he raised you to fight against. Why, imagine his disappointment."

"Shut up!" Dean yelled out but didn't deny the creature's words. Harry felt like he couldn't breathe from the revelation. Hurt emerald eyes stared at the older Winchester who refused to look at him and pushing back the distress he was feeling, he tore his eyes away from him to look back at the shapeshifter.

"You see, Harry. All I want to do is protect you." It said, running its hand through Harry's hair. He jerked to the side in protest and it dropped its hand to its side. "All the hardship that you'll be facing, I can keep you safe from it and the first act of doing so would be killing _you_." It said, turning its stolen hazel-green eyes towards the immobile Winchester.

"I don't need your protection," Harry spoke up, drawing the shapeshifter's attention away from Dean.

"Oh, but you do." It said; the fake Dean's eyes turning towards him with adoration shining within them. It was pathetic, Harry thought, that this was the only chance of him ever seeing what it would look like if Dean were ever to look at him with such emotion. As it were, he didn't want it and he hissed at the imposter.

"You know nothing." Behind the shapeshifter, he saw Dean starting to fiddle with the ropes and he knew enough to keep distracting it. "You changed into my godfather." He guessed and felt the rage grow within him when it nodded.

"I had to get your attention somehow and a wizard, Lestrange, was it?" it said with a smirk. "He was only too kind to give me the information that I needed to do so."

"You bastard!" Harry shouted and received a hard slap to the face. His cheek rapidly turning red in a shape of a handprint, he spat at the shapeshifter when he drew his head back up. His face was grabbed by the fake Dean's finger and it squeezed rather tightly. Harry was sure that it was going to leave some bruises.

"He had warned me that you were rough around the edges," it said, forcing Harry's head to tilt up so that it can look deep into his eyes. "He said it would take work for me to tame you so that I can keep you safe from harm."

Looking into its eyes, Harry, for the first time, can see a glint of madness behind the adoration it expressed. He tried to jerk his head away only to have the grip tighten.

"My little Harry," it crooned. "Behave, won't you? I'm sure that you'll soon fall in love with me as much as I have for you." Saying this, it leant down towards the face of a resisting Harry and captured his full lips with its stolen ones.

Harry felt like gagging and couldn't help the sound of distress that escaped his throat.

He gasped for air when the creature was suddenly ripped from his body and thrown hard into the wall. He looked up to find that Dean had managed to free himself from his bindings and was now practically growling in anger at his look-alike.

"You son of a bitch!" Dean cursed. "I'm going to fucking kill you!" He launched at the shapeshifter and threw a punch, hitting the imposter in the face.

It stumbled back a bit before regaining its balance and threw one of its own in which Dean blocked. They traded blow after blow and Harry watched in eerie fascination at the two Deans going at it.

Dean sustained a hit to the gut and he grunted from the pain before he tackled the thing to the ground. The two landed hard onto the concrete ground, limbs tangled with one another as they both tried to get the upper hand.

Dean threw a fist into the other's jaw, breaking it with a sickening crack and slammed the creature's head against the ground.

"Harry! Dean!" Harry heard Sam faintly from afar and he struggled with his voice.

"Sam!" He called out loudly, his head ringing from his own voice. "We're in here!" He focused back at the scene of the two Deans and to his trepidation, the shapeshifter had dug a finger into Dean's gunshot wound, causing the hunter to cry out in pain. Taking the opportunity, the shapeshifter kicked Dean off and the two began to circle each other with Dean favoring his side while the creature its jaw.

Abruptly, the shapeshifter rushed at Dean and they began to grapple.

"Harry!" Sam cried out when he made it to the room and he ran towards Harry to untie him from the chair. When the ropes fell free of Harry, he tentatively rubbed his raw and bloodied wrist, trying to get the circulation running smoothly again into his hands.

"Aim for the one with the broken jaw." Harry pointed out, standing unsteadily on his two feet. Unable to get a clear shot, they had to wait until one or the other gave.

Grunting, Dean dislodged one of the creature's arms from his body and slammed his fist again into its jaw before kicking it away from him.

"Sam!" He called out and watched in sick fascination when his younger brother pulled the trigger and lodging the bullet neatly into the shapeshifter's heart. The creature flew back a bit from the pressure and landed on its back, reminding him eerily of the time back in St. Louis.

With the threat now gone, Harry's legs could no longer support himself and he crumbled in a small heap beside Sam's feet, hurling. The nausea had finally won.

"Harry!" He felt Sam grab a hold of him and rubbed his back in an attempt to sooth him. Gagging, he faintly realized that he should be embarrassed but he was too sick and dizzy to care as his stomach gave a lurch and he threw up some more.

"Dean's shot." He managed to gasp out, directing the care where it was direr.

"I'm fine," Dean assured. "Just gotta get back to the motel so you can work your magic fingers, Sammy, and I'll be good as new." Harry felt the man crouch down beside him. "This one here, though, he has a concussion."

"No, I don't." Harry denied weakly, standing up weakly to stumble away from his vomit. The smell was making him even more nauseous if it was possible and he felt Dean steady him. "My wand." He said, looking around blearily. "I think it has my wand." He made to go towards the dead figure of the fake Dean.

"I'll get it," Sam said, giving Harry a stern look. "Just sit still all right? I'll be right back." Too dizzy to deny the help, Harry nodded and with Dean's help, he sunk slowly to the ground and leaned against the man's chest.

"Harry," Dean said softly, looking nervous. "About what the shapeshifter said-" Harry already knew where this was going and he swallowed the hurt back.

"It's okay, Dean." He cut the Winchester off. "I understand." And he did understand.

He understood the want of approval from a parent and the fear of disappointing them so though he was hurt, he did understand.

Offering the man a shaky reassuring smile, he gently pushed himself off the man so that he could support himself and slowly got back to his feet, swaying a bit before righting himself. Dean had a frustrated look on his face and he got up as well.

"I got it, Harry." Sam said, coming back with Harry's wand. He handed it to its rightful owner and smiling at the taller Winchester in thanks, he accepted it.

"What are we gonna do about the shifter?" He asked softly, using Sam as a crutch when he was offered an arm.

"We're gonna burn the fucker." Dean answered, looking as if he was having an argument with himself on the inside.

With that said, they set quickly to work; Harry was told to sit down and to _not _fall asleep but not before he had cast a cleaning charm to get rid of his vomit. Dragging the fake Dean out into the opening, it was fortunate that the area that they were in was one of the more abandoned parts of the town and from routine, they salted and burned the corpse.

It was when they were in the Impala that Dean finally spoke up.

"You know, the whole funeral thing isn't as great as I thought it would be."

…

**One and a Half Week Later…**

It had taken Harry approximately four days to heal from his concussion along with the rope wounds and bruises thanks to the potions that he had packed. It was a rough four days after the adrenaline rush had left him, leaving him miserable with a mother hen Sam hovering over him and Dean while they were recuperating.

It was enough to say, Harry was never exactly a good patient and Sam had to keep a close eye on the small wizard to keep him from wandering away from his bed when he should be resting. He had offered Dean a healing potion for his gun wound after Sam had taken out the bullet, prepared for it to be turned down but to his surprise, Dean accepted it.

He had giggled at the expression that the man had made when he had gulped it down, exclaiming that it tasted like old socks. He watched in amusement as the two brothers looked at the gun wound in amazement when it slowly started sewing itself shut, leaving no trace of a scar behind.

"Dude, that was amazing!" Dean had remarked. "But the taste could use an improvement." He added, grimacing from the leftover taste.

But that was about a week ago and Harry was now sitting with a stranger at the bar in an attempt to squash the crush he had on Dean. He giggled at the stranger's antics and took a small sip from his own drink, careful on not getting drunk.

He had been sitting with Dean and Sam when the bartender himself went up to Harry and given him a drink, pointing out the man who had bought it for him. Seeing it as a chance to move on from his crush, he excused himself from the two brothers and went off towards the now smiling man.

He hadn't wanted to tell Sam what was going on but within the four days that the three were locked up in the motel room together, the intelligent hunter had picked up the tension that the two were emitting and had poked and prodded Harry until he told him what was wrong.

While Sam had been assured that Harry wasn't going to break Dean's heart, he had forgotten to take into account that Dean could just as likely break Harry's. And Harry was trying to put a stop to it before his heart truly did break.

He leaned in closer into the man's space and let the other's smooth voice wash over him. He felt all his troubled thoughts beginning to slip away and for the moment, he let himself be drawn in by the man's skillful tongue of story weaving.

Story weaving because all the accomplishments and success tales that were coming from the man's mouth couldn't be anything else but lies.

"Why don't we go somewhere more quiet?" The man, he couldn't recall his name, asked, leaning in close to speak into Harry's ear. Harry made a show of thinking about it but he already knew what his answer was going to be. He made it a point to never go home with random strangers.

No matter how down he was.

"I'm not sure." He responded slowly, drawing away from the man.

"Come on," the man wheedled, drawing Harry back towards him. The man's hand began running up his arm in an attempt to seduce him. "It'll be fun. Let's go."

"He's not going anywhere with you." Dean's voice suddenly filtered into the air, startling the man into jerked away from Harry. He looked over at their interrupter.

"What-"

Harry and Dean never heard the rest because Dean had already grabbed a hold of Harry's wrist and tugged him gently away. Shocked more than anything, he let the older Winchester pull him until they were outside of the bar.

"Dean! What the-" He was cut off when Dean's lips caught his full lips in a kiss, pushing Harry against the wall. Caught by surprise, Harry stood still for a few seconds before he angrily drew his fist back and connected it to the side of the man's face.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" Harry asked angrily, poised for action. He gazed at the man who was holding the side of his face.

"I didn't think my kiss was _that_ bad." Dean joked, a grin on his face. It faded when he saw Harry's unimpressed look. "I've been thinking and uh, I was wondering if we can give this a shot?"

"What about your dad?" Harry asked, his brows furrowing. He crossed his arms in front of his chest in a defensive gesture. When Dean didn't answer, Harry huffed in frustration and started to go back to the bar only to have the older man stop him.

"I'm willing to take the risk." Dean said and Harry shook his arm free.

"You can't just say it that easily," he responded angrily, not willing to give into him just yet. "You might say that now but you'll regret it sooner or later and I _refuse_ to be some toy to you."

"You're not a toy." The Winchester said, grabbing a hold of Harry's shoulders with his hands. "Dammit, Harry. Every time that I think I managed to stop these feelings for you; you appear before me and prove me wrong." He rubbed the back of his head in an awkward manner. "I don't want to let this go and my dad… I want to believe that he'd be okay with it."

Harry frowned up at him.

"And if he wouldn't be?"

"I still can't let this go." Dean said, leaning down to press their foreheads together. "You do something to me, Harry." Their eyes connected and after searching the older hunter's eyes, he smiled softly when all he found was sincerity dwelling in the man's hazel-greens.

"You do something to me, too," he admitted, drawing his hands up to lay them lightly on the man's arms. "What does this mean?"

Dean chuckled.

"Personally, if you agree, it means that you're mine, Potter." Harry smiled at the claim and the last of the reserve he held towards the man faded away.

"If that's the case, then that means you're mine as well, Winchester." Dean's hands slid down from his shoulders and he felt the man's arms wrap around his slight frame. "So you aren't going to flirt with anybody else from now on, are you?" He asked, narrowing his eyes at the hunter.

"No one else but you," he answered easily, pulling Harry close to his muscular frame. He sighed in mock pity. "Poor Sammy's gonna have his work cut out for him now." Harry giggled.

"Are you complaining?"

"Nah, it'll be fun to watch Sammy boy flirt." Dean said, a boyish grin on his face. "Just to tell you, I'm pretty possessive." Harry hmmed as he raised his arms to wrap around the hunter's neck, raising himself to the tip of his toes to be able to do so.

"I'm fine with that," Harry murmured as he drew the man's face close to his own. "You'll find that I'm pretty possessive myself."

With that said, their lips connected and unlike the previous kiss, it was consumed with their passion and the mutual feelings that they have for one another.

It wasn't perfect but it was a start.

…

**A/N**: Done! =D

So… I tried to make their relationship develop as natural as possible but I'm not sure how I did, so if you're in the mood, tell me what you think so I can get your opinion. Whether it's on their relationship or the chapter in general (since I'm a bit worried about this one), it'll be nice to hear what you think. =]

Again, thanks for reading!

For those who were wondering:

Streeler (XXX)- A giant snail that changes color on an hourly basis and leaves behind a trail that shrivels and burns all vegetation that pass over it. It's venom is known to kill Horklumps. (I got it from a Harry Potter website) =P


	8. 07

Chapter Seven

It was early in the morning and all was calm as two of the three occupants in the room were still sound asleep in their beds. An occasional rustle of sheets could be heard when one of the two would shift in their sleep and light sounds of scratching filled the air as Harry tried to finish up penning a rather detailed report to Kingsley to update the man of the happenings in America.

A completed letter that he had written to thank George for the present he had sent lay next to him and a calm Pig was settled quite comfortably in Harry's messy hair. Age had finally caught up to the little owl and it wasn't as hyper as it used to be. Of course, going through a war and losing its owner was something that also had to be taken into account for its maturity.

Sealing the report and casting a spell on it so that only Kingsley would be able to open it, Harry prodded at the owl to rouse it from its roost and smiled softly when it nipped his finger affectionately. He tied the two letters securely to its foot and with strict instructions, he opened the window and sent Pig on its way.

It was only when he had closed the window that he was startled by a yell coming from Dean's bed and he whirled around with wand in hand in time to see the man dive to the ground with the knife he kept under his pillow. Sam had jolted up from his sleep and was immediately tensed and wide awake to look for the threat in the room.

Following Dean's gaze to where he was looking, Harry was alarmed to find the man's killing aura directed towards his newly acquired pet which was squeaking in distress.

"Dean, don't!" Harry cried out, rushing towards the bed and grabbing the poor thing out of danger's way. He cradled it in his hand and stared accusingly at the man who looked confused now more than anything.

"Harry, what is that?" Sam asked from his bed. Dean lowered his weapon when Harry gave him a stern look and then extended his hand out for the two brothers to see.

"A pygmy puff." Harry answered with a small grin. The little bluish-black furball squeaked, turning its emerald green eyes on the other two. "Well, a new species of a pygmy puff. The only one for now."

"A what puff?" Dean questioned as Sam got up from his bed to take a closer look. Harry handed it over to the tallest Winchester and sat down on the floor next to Dean, carefully extracting the knife from the man.

"A pygmy puff." He repeated, smiling when the hunter tentatively pulled him closer to his proximity. "One of my best mates, George, breeds them from puffskeins. That," he pointed at the creature that was squeaking in a curious Sam's hand. "Is somewhat of a new species since usually they come in only pink or purple. George said that he specifically bred that for me."

"It looks like a puffball." Dean said, making Harry laugh.

"With your eye color." Sam added, poking at the creature and jerked his hand away in surprise when a long tongue emerged from its hidden mouth.

"They're harmless." Harry said and taking Dean's hand in his own, he looked up at the man with his own vivid green eyes. "They're docile and they're usually kept as pets." His eyes then narrowed at the man in warning. "So promise me that you aren't going to kill it."

"I wasn't thinking of ganking it," he defended himself against the accusing gaze, even though moments before he was seriously contemplating it. "As long as it doesn't hurt anybody, there's no reason to kill it." Harry smiled up at the man and squeezed his hand gently.

He looked away from Harry then to find Sam and the… puffball with the exact color of Harry's green eyes gazing at him. He looked over at the clock and shook his head.

"It's too early for this. Who's up for breakfast?"

Seeing that Sam was distracted again by the fluffball, he gave Harry a small kiss on the lips before picking said wizard up and dumping him on the bed. He smirked at the indignant expression that Harry was sporting and quickly headed towards the bathroom to prevent him from retaliating.

A tiny humming noise could be heard filling the room and Harry turned his attention over to Sam and the pygmy puff to find the man almost enthralled with it like a kid with a new toy. With a small smile, he curled up on Dean's bed with the covers around him and took in the man's scent while he waited for his return.

…

"No." Dean said gruffly, catching Harry's attention. He turned his eyes away from the passenger seat window to witness a scene that will forever be imprinted in his memory.

Dean was currently having a staring contest with Tribbles the pygmy puff. Dean had called it such in jest, to the confusion of Harry who didn't watch American shows, only to find that it refused to respond to anything else _but_ Tribbles.

One of the man's hand held a french fry only inches away from his mouth but didn't get any further as his attention was on the black puffball gazing at him with pitiful eyes from the dashboard. Harry stifled a laugh at the predicament Dean seemed to be in and stayed silent to see what the hunter was going to do.

"Dammit, no!" Dean repeated but the creature only stared at him with eyes that appeared to be watering. Harry felt a grin stretch across his face when he saw the man's resolve begin to crumble and he mournfully handed over the food.

Its eyes quickly changed from watery to sparkling with joy when it saw the hunter offered it the food and its long tongue slid out to grab a hold of it, pulling it back into the caverns of its mouth to devour.

Still grinning, Harry slid over from his spot to the sulking Dean and held one of his own french fry in front of the man's mouth.

"You're just a big ol' softy, aren't you?" He teased and slid the fry into Dean's mouth when it opened.

"You're seeing things." Dean mumbled, munching on the fried potato. Harry leant in closer to kiss the man on the cheek and watched as the older man's cheeks begin to flush a bit pink.

"You're cute." He said and lifted his own food into Dean's view. "Do you want the rest?" Dean, of course, accepted and frowned when he saw how much was left in the bag.

"You need to eat more." He pointed out, pulling out the half finished burger. "No wonder you're so small." Harry stuck his tongue out at him.

"I'm just not used to eating so much." Harry replied. "I'm usually too busy with work to remember to eat so by the time I get time off, my stomach has already adjusted to eating small amounts of food."

Dean gaped at the small wizard before closing his mouth, drawing Harry close to his body.

"Well, I guess now I got two people's eating habits to worry about." He said with a boyish grin.

"You don't need to worry about that," Harry protested. "I can take care of myself."

"In case you've forgotten, you're mine now and I take care of what's mine." Dean refuted. "Making sure you eat is something I have the right to worry about."

"I _do_ eat." He argued, though a bit weakly. More than once had Severus or one of the Weasleys pointed out the flaws of his eating habits.

Letting Dean draw his face upwards, he slid his hand onto the man's shoulder and leaned into the embrace as Dean sealed their lips into a kiss. He opened his mouth slightly when he felt a tongue probe at the seam of his lips and moaned when the talented tongue slipped in between them, engaging his own in a dance.

"We should stop," Harry pointed out breathlessly, trying to break off the kiss. "Sam could be back at any minute." Dean chose to not respond but simply drew Harry's lips back to his own, continuing where they had left off.

Dropping his hand down from Dean's shoulder, Harry played with the hems of the man's shirt and stole under it to feel the toned muscles. He was drawn even closer to the other, half aware of the sound of crinkling paper from them squishing the food, and felt a shiver of pleasure run through him when he felt the man's hand at the small of his back.

"Oh my god!"

The two were immediately snapped back into reality and they pulled away from each other quickly at the sound of Sam's voice.

Harry felt his face heat up and felt a small feeling of horror well within him. It was one thing about making sexual innuendos but it was another when you get caught making out with your friend's brother.

Sam, at the moment, was also in such a state. Of course he knew that the two had gotten together but he wasn't expecting to walk in on them making out any time soon. Or at all would've been nice.

The silence lingered for a few moments.

"Well, this is awkward." Dean said, finally breaking the silence. Suddenly finding this all too amusing, Harry began chuckling and peered up at Sam.

"If you wanted to join, Sam. All you had to do was ask, I wouldn't have mind." Harry teased and Dean growled at the comment, drawing him close.

"No, you can_not_." He said, giving Sam a pointed look.

Sam shook his head in response and got in the backseat.

"Yeah, well, if I knew you two were practically gonna have sex in the car in _broad_ daylight, I would've came back much earlier." He replied, adjusting the suit he was wearing. "Dean, do I need to remind you that you're wanted? You said you were going to keep a low profile, possibly getting arrested for inappropriate display is _not_ keeping a low profile."

"You're such a downer, Sammy." Dean grumbled as he started up the car. Harry scooted back to his seat and Tribbles rolled after him from the dashboard. It squeaked in happiness when Harry picked it up and started petting it. "So, what did you find out? What did the guy say?"

"He claimed that he wasn't even aware of what he was doing for the past week." Sam answered, running a worried hand through his hair. "What if it's another psychic kid with powers like Andy, Dean? He said that it felt like he was underwater and the only thing he could do was follow the orders that were given him."

Harry tensed at the description and his petting stopped.

"Did he happen to say that he was getting commands that sounded like they were a distant echo? That all his anxiety and worries vanished, leaving only a sense of floating?" He questioned faintly. Harry felt Dean's eyes look over at him worriedly, but he pretended to not notice.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

Harry knew Sam had been worried the last few days ever since he had the dream about the man. He had woken up with a start from the backseat, immediately telling them of the man who was about to kill his neighbors. Harry, who had somehow curled himself around Dean, unwound himself and sat straight up to allow the hunter to start up the car so that they could head off.

It had taken them three days of nearly nonstop driving to get there to unfortunately find that the man had tried to carry out the act but fortunately, he was detained before he could harm anybody. As if emerging from a long sleep when they pinned him to the ground, the man began panicking and shouting in confusion and before he knew it, he was locked away in the mental ward where Sam went to question him.

"It might not be a psychic kid." Harry said slowly. "From what you said, when your friend used his powers, the person under control is fully aware of their surroundings and what they are doing. What you described, however," he paused, turning to face the two brothers. "It sounds like he was under the Imperius Curse, where the victim has no control of what they are doing and only dimly aware of what's happening around them. They're mere puppets for their castors to manipulate at will."

"So the Imperius, can all wizards use it?" Sam asked.

"If the person has a strong enough intent and is powerful enough, they can." Harry answered slowly. "Though, it's considered to be one of the Unforgiveable Curses and it's usually forbidden to use."

"Usually?" Dean questioned, his voice not betraying what he was feeling inside. Harry felt like Dean was drawing away but plowed forward anyway, telling himself that they needed to know.

"During the war, there were exceptions of the uses of the Unforgiveable Curses." He didn't elaborate further.

"What are the Unforgiveable Curses?"

He was too far lost in thought to even know who had asked the question.

"There are three," Harry answered. "The Imperius Curse that can control someone else, the Cruciatus Curse which inflicts the victim with excruciating pain, and the word of them all is the Killing Curse where it instantly kills the victim."

There was a moment of silence as the Winchester brothers tried to take the information in.

"Did-did you ever use them?"

"I've attempted all three of them," Harry admitted. "During the war, I cast the Imperius Curse twice to get something that we needed towards winning the war and the Killing Curse once to rid the world of the man who murdered my parents and so many more."

"And the Cruciatus Curse?"

"At a woman who just murdered my godfather right before my eyes." He said, smiling a bit bitterly. "It didn't work though. Apparently I didn't have enough hate for the woman." He gazed at them with solemn eyes, a soul that was far older than his physical age reflected in them. "I don't regret what I did. Three out of four went towards winning the war and I'd do it again if I had to."

Silence once again descended within the car and Harry began to feel a swell of doubt begin to grow within him. He wouldn't lie and say he felt remorse for casting those curses but he was scared that the people he had come to call friends (and boyfriend?) would reject him. The times in Hogwarts that the students would turn on him flashed through his mind but before he could get lost in them, he felt a hand squeeze his shoulder.

He looked over to find Sam, who gave him a small smile and Dean, not to be outdone by his brother, grabbed a hold of Harry's hand. He could sense that the both of them were a little wary but with their actions, they showed him that they would still stand by him.

"So, you got any clue who's behind it?" Dean asked and Sam drew back to sit in his seat. Harry took a deep breath.

"Mulciber." He responded. Savage's murderer. "He was known as the Imperius specialist…" He continued on to describe the man and what he knew.

…

They had followed the trail that Mulciber had left in his wake for four days now and it seemed like they weren't getting any closer to the man. There was no predicting where he was going to go next and they only knew where he had struck after he had done so.

Harry can tell that it was taking a toll on Sam, the man was practically emitting the guilt he felt for not being able to _see_ it happen and made a mental note to talk to him. Having dreams of possible outcomes was also something that Harry shared in common with the younger Winchester and he sincerely hoped that the similarities ended there for the sake of Sam's mental health.

"Ahh… this feels so good." Dean moaned and Harry shook his head at the look of pure ecstasy on the man's face when he came back into the room after getting all the information that he could get. He had gone to a remote area of the town and with subtle influence to his magic, he stretched it thinly across the town to get a sense if Mulciber's presence was around.

He had found that the man had been there only about two days ago, confirming that indeed it was his work and not, what Sam had feared, one of the psychic kids. Though, Harry did wonder what exactly the man was up to. He wasn't doing this at random, and most certainly, the ending result would only lead to more disaster if he wasn't stopped.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked, closing the door behind him. He looked curiously at the bed that appeared to be vibrating and back towards the relaxed body of Dean Winchester.

"You got to try this out." Dean said, motioning Harry to come over. Hesitating for a brief second, Harry dropped his backpack and walked over to the bed where Dean immediately grabbed him around the waist to pull him down. "Hmm… I can think of a few things we could do on this bed before Sammy gets back."

"Which will be in a few minutes, I bet." Harry responded with a grin, his troubles momentarily fading to the back of his mind. When he had gone off on his own, Sam had informed the older Winchester that he had to stay behind in the room, reminding him of his still wanted status.

"A few minutes is better than none." Dean answered, pulling Harry close to him. Wiggling, Harry maneuvered his body until he was straddling the Winchester and looked down at the man. He could feel the hunter's erection pressing against his bottom and suppressed a moan, the vibrations not helping his control in the slightest. "I told you this feels good." Dean said with a smirk and thrust his pelvis upwards.

Harry gasped in surprised and placed a hand on the man's chest to keep himself from being bucked off.

"There's something I need to ask you."

"Can't you do that later?" Dean asked, gripping Harry's waist but stopped any further advances as he looked up at the small wizard. Harry bit his bottom lip, trying to ignore the vibrating sensation.

"I'm a wizard."

"I know that." Dean said, tensing a bit.

"And I use magic." Harry added. "I can cast spells that can cause a lot of damage to another person and I can do the things that the very people I'm determined to catch can do." His expressive green eyes peered down at Dean. "I just wanted to know if you can deal with that knowledge."

With a last shudder, the vibration stopped, leaving the two bathed in the silence it left behind. Dean's hold on Harry's waist eased off a bit and he raised one of his hands to grip the back of Harry's neck gently. He pulled the wizard down towards his face.

"I can." Dean answered with a seriousness Harry had never seen before. "I didn't know the exact things you could do before but I knew that if I wanted this to go anywhere, I'd have to accept that you can do magic. I don't care what the Deatheaters or whatever can do, I _know_ you aren't evil and I know that I can trust you with Sammy and my life." He cleared his throat then and gave him a crooked grin. "Now, enough with the chick flick moment, yeah?"

Harry smiled brightly at the man and leaning down, he put the love he could feel growing for the hunter in the kiss he bestowed to the man beneath him. Dean's words warmed him in a way that no one had been able to in a long time and he melted into the man's hold.

Hearing the jingle of a key being inserted into the lock, Harry broke the kiss and withdrew from Dean, taking a seat beside him.

"Sammy!" Dean called out jovially when Sam entered the room. "Got any more quarters?"

"Dude, I'm not enabling your sick habit. You're like one of those lab rats that pushes the pleasure button instead of the food button until it dies." Sam said, and Harry couldn't help but chuckle at the comment.

"What are you talking about? I eat," Dean defended himself, pointing at Harry. "This one on the other hand, he doesn't eat _enough_."

"Just because I don't eat like I'm a garbage disposal like you do, doesn't mean that I don't eat enough." Harry responded, poking the man in the rib. He turned his attention back to the younger Winchester. "Sam, do you know where Tribbles is?"

A squeak can be heard coming from Sam's pocket and with almost a sheepish look, Sam stuck his hand inside and pulled the little creature out.

"He, uh, followed me."

Dean chuckled.

"This isn't bring your pet to work day, Sammy."

"I know that. It just snuck into my pocket." Sam defended himself. "And it's Sam."

"Yeah, yeah." He said and sat up when he saw the bags of food in his brother's hands. "Did you get any pie?"

…

It was a couple of days later that they found themselves in a predicament.

"Demonic omens on the right and madman working for the demons on our left." Dean said. They were currently parked at the side of the road and contemplating on what they should do.

"We can split up," Harry suggested from his spot on the Impala's hood. "I can go after Mulciber while you two go check on the omens."

"No way." Dean rejected. "No one's going off on their own."

"But if we leave one of them unattended, who knows what's going to happen." Harry argued. "Tracking down Mulciber is my job and the demon is yours. If anything, I can apparate back to you guys."

"Harry's right," Sam broke in before Dean could have another say. "We can't leave it alone and Harry can always come back if anything happens." Seeing Dean give him a look, Sam nodded and walked a ways off to give the two some time alone.

When Sam was a good distance away, Dean walked over to Harry and wrapped his arms around the smaller man.

"I'll be fine, Dean." Harry attempted to assure the man.

Dean opted to not to respond, choosing to tilt Harry's face up and kissed him with such intensity that it stole Harry's breath away. He gripped the man's jacket and drew himself close.

After a few minutes, Dean drew back.

"Promise me you'll be safe."

"Only if you promise me as well." Harry responded and with the promise that they'll try their best, Dean motioned for Sam to come back.

Harry hopped off the hood and opened the door to grab his backpack and the newspaper with information on Mulciber. Tribbles squeaked in alarm when Harry didn't pick it up and rolled out of the car, landing with a small bounce on the ground, to get to Harry.

"No, Tribbles." Harry said, picking it up. "You're gonna stay with Sam and Dean." It squeaked in distress but stopped when Harry petted it. "I'll come back as soon as I can." He reassured it before handing it to Dean.

"Take care of each other." Harry said.

"Take care." Sam responded.

And with one last look into Dean's eyes, Harry apparated with a pop and allowed his magic to lead him to where Mulciber was currently causing trouble. The sooner he got there to deal with Mulciber, the sooner he would be able to return to where he was starting to consider home with the Winchesters.

...

**A/**N: Thanks for reading! =] And thanks a bunch for the responses I got for my previous chapter! It's great to hear that you're enjoying the story so far and I hope I don't disappoint. Not too sure how well this chapter turned out but yeah… Hopefully the next chapter will be better so keep an eye out. =]

Anyway, you probably recognized the quote with the lab rats. It's one of my all time favorites from Supernatural. =D


	9. 08

Chapter Eight

Appearing in an alleyway with a not so quiet pop, Harry stumbled a bit and steadied himself against the wall as he gagged from the tainted magic that he was forced to travel through to get to the unknown town. He could feel his magic rise up within him in offense, fighting off the corrupted wild magic that still clung onto him like a second skin.

Feeling the wild magic slowly and reluctantly fall away from him, he straightened himself and slowly made his way towards the edge of the alleyway, peering out cautiously.

_There is something utterly wrong here._ Was what his instincts immediately screamed at him and his defenses rose when he noticed exactly _what_ was wrong with the town he had just arrived in.

There were no people in sight. Restaurants and stores were left eerily empty with their doors wide open and cars were left abandoned in hazardous arrays on the street.

The town was completely barren of any life form.

Harry felt a shiver run through him from the empty void that seemed to envelop the town that seemed to be a remnant of a lively place. It felt like a mass of dementors had their run of the place, sucking all the happiness and warmth from it.

With wand in hand, Harry cautiously walked through the streets; his senses on full alert. The silence was unnatural and Harry knew from experience that silence was definitely not a good sign.

As he was walking past a small diner, the smell of large amounts of metallic wafted towards his nose and he paused in midstride, his senses practically yelling at him to keep his guard up. He knew that he would find in the place would not be pleasant at all.

He subtly reached out his magic, searching for any sign of Mulciber in the area and slowly entered when his magic informed him that the man had left hours ago. Small traces of the man's dark presence still lingered in the air, amplified by the tainted free magic that was here in America. He suppressed a shudder when it caressed itself against his skin almost lovingly, inviting him to draw upon it. To embrace it.

His own magic that flowed through his veins gave a pulse of a warning, sending the corrupted magic scurrying away from his being.

He stuck to the shadows and slowly headed towards the area where the smell seemed to be predominantly at and rounding behind the diner's counter, Harry fought back the bile that was churning in his stomach and stumbled back a bit away from the scene. Disgust and horror ran through him and it severely reminded him of the times back in the war.

In front of him was a dead form of what used to be a woman. The woman's legs and arms were bent at an odd angle and he knew immediately that someone had broken them with their bare hands with malicious intent.

'A cruel sense of humor.' The thought drifted through his mind and mentally shook the thought free.

The woman had not died a peaceful death. Besides her broken bones that Harry could clearly see sticking out of her skin, her chest was ripped open with what he assumed to be a knife. It was too clumsy compared to the neat cut that a cutting curse can do and he fought with himself to stay in the present instead of being drawn into the memories of five years before.

The woman's entrails were yanked cruelly from her body and she had died trying to desperately stuff them back into her body despite her broken bones. The woman's face was frozen into a look of pure terror and pain, dried blood trailing from her mouth to where it was hidden by her hair. Her eyes were a blank stare, red and bleeding from a popped vessel.

She was placed under the Cruciatus Curse. Harry could tell immediately, familiar with the dark magic that was practically clinging to the woman's broken form. He just wasn't sure if it was done after or before the breaking of her bones and he didn't want to know.

He just knew that he would need back up when all this was over.

Reaching for the pendant that hung around his neck, he tried to send a message to the Auror's Headquarters but he could feel the tainted magic blocking his attempt. There was no possible way for him to obtain an owl and a patronus would be impractical to send across a vast ocean.

He unclasped the pendant from his neck and praying that his own magic would overcome the wild one, he created a portkey that would transport itself directly to Kingsley. He could feel his magic hissing and pulsing out threatening waves at the wild magic that was trying to override his attempts and he focused on twisting and forming the necessary magic to create one.

With one final push, he successfully made his pendant into a portkey and scribbled a note on a spare parchment before activating it, watching it disappear. He focused his attention back onto the woman and he carefully made his way to her, closing her eyes with shaky hands before he noticed that one of her fingers had been manipulated to point at the opposing wall before her.

He followed where her finger was pointed and immediately spotted the piece of cloth that was pinned to the wall. Tightening his grip on his wand, he walked over to the wall and with a quick motion of his wrist, he yanked the cloth off the wall to reveal the words written under them in blood.

The woman's blood to be precise.

_Follow the trail of bodies, Potter. I'll be waiting._

It was sickening and he felt dread from the knowledge that there were more people out there that met the similar fate as the woman. Strengthening his resolve, he covered the woman with the cloth with care and knowing that there was nothing else he could do for her, he left the small diner to continue on his path.

There indeed was a trail of dead broken bodies. All mutilated and tortured, increasingly so as he traveled onwards. One of their hands was always manipulated so that it would point the way like a twisted version of directional signs.

Walking deeper into the town, the tension in the air was palpable and the temperature was colder the further he walked forward. It was like the time back in the war and he could feel that past try to creep up on him.

A weak cough reached his ears and he turned towards the broken figure of an elderly man that was a few feet ahead of him. His magic was steadily crackling around him, ready to defend him in any case of threat that he may find thrown at him as he made his way over to the man in quick steps.

He was unsure how he was still alive and he quickly tried to staunch the blood flow that was coming from the man's stomach, sliding his wand up his sleeve. Unlike the others, his intestines were not ripped away from his body but the cut was deep, cutting through the bone.

"Hold on, I'll get you some help." Harry spoke to the man, willing him to survive but his efforts were put to a stop when the man shakily placed a broken hand over his.

"No," he gurgled, his voice barely audible. "It's far too late for me, lad." Harry tried to deny it but he was shushed by the man. "It's too late for me but I hope it's not too late for my granddaughter." He coughed and blood dripped down from the side of his mouth.

"Won't you please help her?" He asked and Harry's heart went out for the elderly man.

"I'll try my best." He promised.

"A man, he came here and before we knew it," the man coughed again, gasping for air. He waved away Harry's help. "People began acting different. Neighbors killing other neighbors without a sign of remorse and he watched it all while _laughing_. It was all just a sick game to him."

Harry could see with clarity that the life was slowly leaving the man and he felt utterly helpless.

"Do you know where everyone else is?" He asked. Reaching this point, he had come across ten bodies before the elderly man and he wondered where Mulciber had taken the rest.

"C-center of town." Was the reply and the man gave a wet cough that had a large amount of blood pouring from his mouth and stomach. Harry's hands were becoming drenched in it but he paid it no mind as he placed his hands above the wound. He knew without a doubt that there was no helping the man.

The wounds were far too extensive and the man was on his last few breaths of life.

"Please," the man implored him. "Please save my granddaughter."

"I'll try my best." He repeated and satisfied with the answer, the man gave a shuddering breath as the life left him, leaving only a broken body behind.

Getting up from his kneeled position, Harry wiped the blood staining his hands on his shirt and once again redrew his wand. If Mulciber thought he was going to break, he was sorely mistaken as it only fed him more strength and determination to be a stop to the man's actions and deeds.

The center of town.

The bodies scattered around to point the way indeed seemed to be leading him to the center and now knowing where he was going, he broke from the path that he had already in the beginning knew was leading him into a trap. It was entirely unknown if Mulciber had planned on leaving the man alive and Harry gathered his magic to feel out any signs of threats aimed towards him.

A pulse of dark magic erupted from the center of town then and Harry felt the urge to rush towards it, a number of possibilities running through his mind of what could've led to it.

A trap. His mind whispered at the most foremost part of his mind and he slid into the shadows, stealthily running towards the place. Even if it was a trap, Harry had to head there if Mulciber was truly holding all of the locals captive there.

Arriving at the edge of the center of town, Harry stayed hidden in the shadows; concealing his magic so that he wouldn't be detected. He kept an eye out for the Deatheater but the man was in hiding as well while the people all bowing low to the stage set up right in the middle of the town.

It was designed to be a source of entertainment for the town to enjoy but Mulciber had twisted it into something ugly and forever tainted for the man's amusement. A woman was tied up by her wrists and ankles, the support of the ropes the only thing keeping her in the air. Her shockingly red hair was obscuring her face but Harry could tell immediately that the woman was dead.

Blood was dripping steadily down from her foot into the small puddle that was forming under her. Multiple cuts adorned her body.

Casting a disillusionment spell upon his form, Harry made his way carefully towards the crowd, his eyes scanning his surroundings for Mulciber. He caught sight of a small girl in the front of the mass of people and saw, like everyone else, that she was bowing low as well. It was as if they were all statues from the way they were all unmoving, frozen and cold. Not a single twitch can be seen and Harry wasn't even sure that they were breathing.

Footsteps can be heard then walking up the stairs that led onto the stage and Harry immediately turned towards it to see Mulciber heading towards the center of the platform. The man's face was as cruel and ugly as Harry remembered him, and the malicious air that surrounded the man seemed to multiply in folds while his eyes glittered with profound clarity and sanity that it sickened Harry.

The man knew exactly what he was doing and he was _enjoying_ it. The misery, the pain, and the fear he brought in his wake, he clearly loved every minute of it.

"I see you're finally here, Mister Potter." Mulciber called out into the crowd and like the crowd, Harry didn't move an inch.

Still under the disillusionment charm, he carefully moved away from the crowd, unwilling to give away his position just yet. If the man was revealing himself out in the open so confidently, it was a sure thing that the dark wizard had something planned.

"Don't be shy now, Potter." He said, waving his wand over the crowd. "I've been waiting for you." He motioned for the small girl to come towards him and Harry can now tell that they were all under the Imperius Curse. "You wouldn't want to test my patience now, would you?" He asked, raising his wand threateningly at the young child.

It was a trap to lure him out but he couldn't afford to _not_ fall into it.

"_Expelliarmus!_" Harry yelled, pointing his wand straight towards Mulciber. The jet of red compact magic rushed towards the dark wizard and he dodged it, staring at where Harry once stood.

Once Harry had casted the spell, he ran towards the man; feeling the disillusionment charm slowly fading away as the dark magic in the air ate at it. He ducked a curse sent towards his reappearing form and sent back another in retaliation.

"Get him!" He heard Mulciber say and immediately the frozen locals of the town began to rise up, heeding the order that was given. Despite not wanting to attack them, Harry sent spell after spell towards them; stunning them so that they wouldn't be able to do any harm towards him or themselves.

He dodged the tackles and attempts to grab him with ease and brought them down until they were all lying stunned on the ground. He tossed a glare over at Mulciber, aware that the man had just been standing there watching him the entire time.

"So weak now that you hide behind muggles?" He taunted while he desperately searched for the little girl. "Ran away and now being a demon's bitch? You bunch are so pathetic."

"_Crucio_." Mulciber hissed and Harry dodged it with ease, shouting out the disarming spell once more only for the dark wizard to step-side it.

"You say that now, Potter, but soon someday, you'll be bowing down to us like the wretched half-blood that you are." Mulciber said. "You'll finally be where you belong, boy."

"Shouldn't you be saying that about yourself?" Harry responded. "With your experience of being on your knees serving master after master? I rather be a half-blood than a pureblood that has the tendency to let others dictate what I do."

"You'll regret ever uttering those words." Mulciber spat angrily. He stepped back and pointed his wand a little to the right of Harry.

Looking in the direction of the wand, Harry was surprised to find the small child standing there with terrified brown eyes. He wasn't sure on how she got there but it was clear that she had been released from the Imperius Curse and was staring at the dangling woman on the stage.

"Nana?" She called softly, taking a step towards the stage.

Hearing Mulciber shout the Cruciatus Curse, Harry rushed towards the child and blocked her with his body as he cast a magical shield before him. The curse slammed into the shield not a second later and the force behind it was astonishing. It actually pushed Harry back a couple of feet and he could practically feel the cracks that the curse was inflicting on his shield.

Not able to take the pressure, the magic that held the shield together shattered and Harry was engulfed by the Cruciatus Curse. Harry went crashing down immediately, the curse seeming to have tripled the amount of power it originally held as it traveled through the air.

It felt like hot knives were repeatedly stabbed through his body and he suppressed the urge to scream. He bit into his bottom lip and faintly realized that he had broken skin when he could taste a large amount of iron in his mouth. He could hear a distant scream and he recognized it as a shrill scream that could only belong to the small girl that he had saved from this horrible fate.

He wanted to tell her to run but all his energy at the moment was focused on him not giving into the pain and screaming with all that he was worth. He tightened his grip on his wand and curled up into a ball, trying to fend off the curse.

For what seemed like years but was actually only minutes, Mulciber ended the curse and left Harry panting for air on the ground. He could feel his muscles spasming from the leftover pain that he could still feel running through his body and he spat out the blood that was filling his mouth from his wound.

"I am impressed." The dark wizard spoke with much amusement in his tone. "It's to be expected from the Boy-Who-Lived. Those muggles you saw as my welcome gifts to you couldn't even last a fraction of what you had, babbling incoherently like the pathetic mudbloods that they were after I had lifted the spell."

"You bastard." Harry hissed out, slowly uncurling himself from his crouched position.

His muscles were twitching uncontrollably and he forced them under control. He couldn't afford to show weakness in front of the man. The little girl had stopped screaming and was now crying with loud sniffles and sobs. Not wanting her to go through much more than she already had, he stunned her; casting a cushioning charm on the ground to prevent her from harm.

Sensing another dark spell flying towards him, he rolled out of the way and sent one of his own.

"_Confringo!_"

The spell shot out of his wand and connected to the stage, blasting it into tiny little pieces. Mulciber was sent flying as he was unprepared for the spell that was uttered from Harry but managed to roll into a crouch. He tossed a cutting curse at the smaller wizard and several cuts appeared on Harry, tearing his skin open.

"_Expelliarmus!_" Harry cried out through the pain and hit the dark wizard square in the chest, sending the man to his back, his wand flying out of his hand. He quickly cast a binding charm on Mulciber before the man could apparate away and ignoring his shaking limbs, he walked over to the man.

Expecting the man to be nearly vibrating in anger, it was to his surprise that the dark wizard was grinning. The hair on the back of his neck rose and he was suddenly wary.

"Eager to go back to Azkaban?" Harry asked, efficiently hiding his uneasiness. Mulciber laughed, his voice grating against Harry's nerves.

"With the gifts that they've bestowed upon me, do you really think you can keep me locked up in Azkaban?" The dark wizard said, his eyes gleaming maliciously. "When will you understand that you're fighting a losing battle, Potter?"

Harry narrowed his eyes at the man.

"There is no war for there to be battles to be won."

"Not _yet_ there isn't." Mulciber responded. "But there will be soon. You're still so pathetically clueless that it's amusing."

"What are you talking about?"

"A war is coming." Harry could hear the glee in the man's tone and it felt like a block of lead had been dropped into his stomach at the admittance. "And pretty soon, you'll find yourself wishing that you had died back then when you fought against the Dark Lord."

"You're lying." Harry denied but Mulciber just laughed.

"The plan's already in motion." The dark wizard revealed, confident that Harry won't be able to stop it in time. "While you're here, your pathetic Winchesters are now in that demon's trap. So, go on, Potter. Send me to Azkaban but I promise you this, there is no doubt that I will get my chance to escape and when I do, I'll kill all your precious people. Starting with that blood traitor Severus."

Harry shook with unsuppressed anger and unconsciously, he summoned the Gryffindor sword into his hand. The people that were tortured and slaughtered by Mulciber flashed through his mind and suddenly Severus's broken form replaced them all. Defeated and completely broken in his own pool of blood.

"You and the rest of your pathetic robe kissing arseholes won't be able to." Harry said, his eyes flashing in anger. Raising the sword in hand, he brought it down upon Mulciber and watched with an unattached air as the sword sliced the man's head cleanly right off.

The head landed a few feet away with a dull thud and rolled a bit before becoming still, the shock in the dark wizard's eyes clearly visible. It was obvious that the man had not expected Harry's action. Taking a deep breath to clear his head, a flood of guilt seemed to flow through him and he let the sword go in which it disappeared before it hit the ground, waiting until it was summoned again.

Stronger than his guilt, his determination was by far greater. No more of his precious people will be dying if he could help it and if he had to kill again to prevent it from happening, he'd do it again in a heartbeat. Even if it destroyed his conscience in the process.

He stumbled away from Mulciber's body and whirled around with wand in hand when he heard the multiple pops filtering into the area.

"Harry!" Kingsley's voice washed over him but he still kept his guard up. It was only after the man had revealed information that were known only by the two of them did he relax. "We would've came sooner but there was a barrier blocking us." He took a look around his surroundings. "What happened here?" The man asked and Harry began to fill him in quickly.

"I killed Mulciber." He admitted after he caught the man up, staring into the dark man's eyes. Kingsley turned away from him to look over at the dark wizard's prone form and sighed. Around them, aurors were on clean up duty. Grim and quick at their work.

It was only then that Harry noticed that the air wasn't as heavy as it was before.

His attention was brought back to Kingsley when the man had placed one of his wide hands onto his small shoulder.

"You're hurt." The man said, peering down at the smaller wizard in concern. He was only faintly aware that his muscles were still spasming while blood was running down his arms and body.

"So I am." He said faintly and Kingsley motioned one of the healers over to check up on Harry but he waved them off, telling them that he was fine. "Mulciber said a war was coming." He said softly when the healers were sent away, frowning at the Harry's stubbornness. The dark man hissed at the information. "Are there going to be any consequences of my actions?" Harry asked, prepared for any punishment that was going to be dealt.

"Considering the circumstances, no." Kingsley said slowly. "Technically, the U.S. isn't our jurisdiction but because of the rumors, I sent Savage and then you to bring light upon the situation. Once over here, the rules of the Wizarding World does not necessarily apply." He let go of Harry's shoulder.

"With the news you've given me, I think we need to pull back."

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, confused.

"We don't deal with cases that directly involve demons." Kingsley said.

"You knew that they were working with demons from my report."

"But I never imagined them stirring up a war," Kingsley responded. "You are to come back and leave this issue alone. This is bigger than I thought it was."

Harry backed away from the man and looked up angrily at him before asking, "So that's what we're going to do? Head back to the Wizarding World and pretend that there's nothing wrong going on over here? You sent me here to track down the rogue Deatheaters!"

"Originally, yes, but there's nothing more to do. We pull back."

"And what if I don't?" Harry asked.

"I'm ordering you to, Harry." Kingsley's eyes reflected the worry and concern he held for Harry. "You don't have to deal with the issue."

"Then I quit." Harry responded and by the looks on Kingsley's face, the man knew that was what Harry was going to say.

"I'm sorry." Kingsley said, but Harry couldn't find it in himself to loathe the man in front of him.

"You're just doing your job." He said softly. "But I can't leave now." His mind flashed an image of Dean and Sam and he stiffened. "I have to go. Now."

He began to draw up the necessary magic to apparate to the Winchester's side.

"Harry," Kingsley's voice spoke up. "If there is anything that you ever need, just ask and I'll do the best I can to help."

Making the man promise to help the little girl, Harry nodded his head in thanks and popped away. He latched onto the image of Dean and the man's presence and felt the dense wild magic trying to box him in, seeming as if it wanted to keep him away.

He could feel the majority of his magic reeling back in preparation to attack the foreign magic and it struck out viciously, shattering the blocks preventing him from reaching the Winchesters. Free from the strains, he appeared beside the Impala with a crack and felt his legs give under his weight, sending him crumbling onto the ground.

"Harry!" He heard Dean call his name and what sounded like a shot gun being cocked. Peering up wearily, he gave a weak smile towards Dean; faintly noticing with apprehension that Sam was no where in sight and instead there was a middle aged man in a trucker's hat looking about ready to shoot him.

"Hi," Harry said, feeling Dean crouch by his side to help him up. His green eyes took in the strange man in front of him and couldn't help asking with a small grin, "Are you going to shoot lil' ol' me?"

…

**A/N**: Done! =]

So… just a little cliffhanger. I was going to add more but it seemed to be about the right place to stop for the moment.

Hoped you enjoyed the chapter, though. ^-^ \V/

Sorry if I didn't respond to your reviews, so I'll say it in here. Thanks a bunch for them. =] It's great to hear what you think about the story! Um... I'll update within three days, I hope.

If you feel up to it, tell me what you think of the chapter. =]


	10. 09

09

"_Are you gonna shoot lil' ol' me?"_ _Harry asked with a small grin._

…

"No one's gonna be shooting anyone." Dean growled beside Harry, manipulating him until he was fully shielded behind Dean's body. "Bobby, put the gun down."

"Are you out of your mind?" The other man asked incredulously, but nevertheless the sound of the safety being clicked back into place filled the air and the weapon was lowered after he saw how serious the Winchester was.

"He's on our side." Harry heard Dean explain as he leaned tiredly against Dean's back, fighting the spasms that were now pronouncedly running through his frame. Dean went on speaking but Harry, for the life of him, couldn't focus nor did he really try to. He trusted Dean to keep him from being shot by overeager hunters.

Maybe he should've let the healer check him. He thought faintly in bemusement before mentally slapping himself to rid him of the thought. Given the chance, the old vulture would've swooped down and strap him down onto a medical bed to lecture him on his 'impulsive behavior' until it drove him insane. Just thinking about it sent shivers running through his frame; there was no way that he was going to fall into her clutches if he could help it.

Clenching his teeth in pain at the rather sudden spasm that ripped through him, he slowly lowered himself down to the ground and opened his backpack with achingly slowness. His backpack was taken from him then and he looked up to see Dean's concerned eyes peering down at him, taking in all the cuts that adorned his body.

"Let me help."

Harry took in a small breath of air and nodded his head in acquiesced.

"Get my potion kit in my bag, would you?" He asked, closing his eyes in exhaustion. Hearing the familiar sound of the vials clinking together, he nodded his thanks to Dean and retrieved the necessary potions that he needed.

He felt the Dean's gentle hands carefully checking on his wounds and barely winced when the cool liquid of antiseptic was applied upon them. Tilting back the muscle relaxant potion, he swallowed it; immediately relaxing in the older man's grip when the potion did its job. A pain reliever potion went down next and he replaced the empty vials back into its case, storing it back into his bag. He didn't want to take any more potions in fear that he would succumb to sleep.

He leaned back against the Impala to allow Dean to bandage his wounds, the potions doing their job to keep the pain tolerable. He could feel the other man's stare at him with suspicion and distrust and he nearly groaned at the impending future of dealing with another paranoid hunter. He understood it but it didn't mean he had to like it.

"Where's Sam?" Harry finally asked the question that had been bothering him since he had appeared. The taller Winchester was no where to be found and he could feel the beginning of worry starting to bubble in the pit of his stomach when Dean tensed from beside him.

Unbiddenly, Mulciber's words drifted through his mind and he struggled to sit up in alarm.

"Where's Sam?" He asked again, gripping one of Dean's hands in dread.

"The demon's got him." Was the expected answer but he still wished that he had been wrong.

"We have to find him." He said, brushing Dean's hands away when the man tried to continue to bandage him up. He attempted to stand up but found that his legs could no longer support his weight. He nearly growled in frustration at his body's lack of obedience.

"We gotta get you taken care of first." The older Winchester said, pushing Harry back down to finish dressing his wounds.

"How long ago was it?" Harry asked quietly.

"Twenty-six hours and we still don't know where he could be." Dean answered, the anger from powerlessness could be heard clearly in his voice.

"We'll find him." Harry assured the man and was slowly helped up. "I'm not resting." He argued when he saw the man open his mouth, his eyes reflecting his resolution. He had just promised himself that he wouldn't let any more of his precious people die and Sam had definitely become one of them.

Dean's phone rang then and setting Harry on the hood of the Impala, he answered it a little ways off; leaving Harry and the man with the shotgun semi-alone since they could still hear what he was saying. Harry resisted the urge to sigh, he could feel the confrontation coming already.

"I don't know what you did, demon, but I want you to unleash the spell you got over the boy." The man, Bobby, demanded, gripping his shotgun in a way that signified that he wouldn't mind unloading a few rounds into him if Harry showed any indication of harming any of them.

"I'm not a demon." Harry corrected, eyeing the man's stance. "And I didn't cast a spell on him." Not any time today anyway, he thought.

"You appear out of no where and the kid's okay with it? I don't believe it."

"Well, believe it." Harry said, not really wanting to get into this conversation at the moment. Maybe when he wasn't so exhausted and Sam was back amongst them, safe from demon clutches was he willing to. Maybe. "Now's not the time to be questioning me on what I am. All you need to know right now is that I'm on your side and we have to find Sam!"

The safety of the shotgun was clicked off and Harry was prepared to defend himself; narrowing his green eyes at the man before him.

"That's not good enough. We ain't going anywhere until you tell me what you are." Harry could practically see the protectiveness the man held for the Winchester brothers radiating from his form and that was what prompted him to answer.

"Wizard." He answered calmly even when the other man's trigger finger twitched slightly at the admission. "Natural born. No deals, no soul selling. You'd really think they'd tolerate me around if I did?"

By the other man's expression, it was clear that the man didn't think so.

"Look, if you don't trust me, that's fine but right now we have to focus on finding Sam."

"There're still some answers I want."

"And you'll get them afterwards." Harry promised solemnly before giving the man a small tired smile. "I'm Harry Potter, by the way."

"Bobby Singer." The man grumbled out, far from giving his trust to Harry. "I find out that you're in leagues with the demons or out to hurt these boys and I'll make sure you regret it."

"I'm sure you will." He said in an amicable manner. After all, he understood where the man was coming from.

"We gotta get to the Roadhouse." Dean cut in at that very moment, his voice gruff and angry. "Ash has something for us."

Ash. Harry had heard mentionings of the man but had never got the opportunity to meet him. All he knew was that he was aiding the Winchesters in searching for the demon that they were specifically after.

Hopping off the hood, he was steadied by Dean and led to the backseat of the Impala while Bobby took the front seat. Dean's hands lingered in concern over his body and he sent him a small reassuring smile.

"Get some sleep." The older Winchester said softly, brushing Harry's wayward hair out of his eyes.

"I'll try." He responded back just as softly. Closing his eyes, he could hear the two hunters in the front mumbling back and forth about Sam and about Harry himself.

Bobby expressing concerns about his trustworthiness and questioning Dean for all the information that he had on Harry and Dean reassuring the man and answering all that he could. Harry didn't mind too much. With Dean answering most of the man's questions, he was hoping that maybe he wouldn't have to answer as much but he knew that it was just wishful thinking.

Gathering the last of his magic, saving a small portion so his magic core could replenish without too much strain, he sent it out of his body and into the air in chance that it would be able to locate a general location of where Sam was. His dwindling magic was met with much resistance and due to fatigue on his part, it lost the battle against the wild magic and drew back into Harry's core all the while hissing in fury.

Losing against the inevitability, he ended up falling asleep; AC/DC lulling him to sleep with the two hunters' voices far in the background.

…

Harry woke up with a start when he felt the car pull to a stop and slowly sat up from his position to peer around at his surroundings. It was with shock and horror when his eyes landed on the burned down establishment that now laid there in ruins and fumbled with his door to get out along with Dean and Bobby.

"Harry, stay in the car. You need your rest." Dean advised Harry but he ignored it in favor of coming closer to inspect the building. Once he was close enough, he could partially see crushed and burnt bodies strewn under the rubble and before he lost balance, he was tugged back against Dean's chest. "You never listen, do you?" The older man muttered, keeping his arm around Harry's waist to support him.

He was still a little weak even after the small nap and so in resignation, he had to use Dean as a crutch if he didn't want to fall head first into the pile of rubble. He could feel the tension and the raw emotions of rage dwelling within the Winchester and knew it stemmed from him unable to get to his brother. Anger was a better emotion to feed off of instead of the worry. Worry would show Dean's vulnerability and the man felt that he couldn't afford it.

Big brothers had to have the strength to protect their younger siblings.

"Any sign of Ellen or Ash?" He asked Bobby only for the answer to come back as a negative. Somberness filled the air and Harry couldn't help shivering from the silence.

From one tragic scene to another, he thought.

Feeling Dean let go of his waist, he watched as the older man bend down to touch a golden watch from a limp arm before pulling away with a small hiss.

"Dammit, Ash."

The one person that held some vital information to their cause was dead and the small hope that he could've helped them find Sam's location was disintegrated. With numb fingers, he reached out and grasped one of Dean's arms and pulled him away from the wreckage until they were seated upon the Impala where Bobby soon came over to stand by them.

They were at a lost.

Harry was mulling over Mulciber's words in his mind but didn't think it was prudent to reveal the information at the moment. They all had a lot on their mind at the moment and to voice another concern when they had yet resolved their primary priority was not a good idea.

He rubbed a hand over his scar and contemplated on what to do next. Mulciber had not only succeeded on separating him from the Winchesters at the most critical moment but he had managed to ensure that Harry's magic would be at an all time low to be of any use at this time and hour. He clenched his hands into tight fists; he hated the man and was only too glad that he was no longer there to cause any more damage in the world.

He was brought away from his thoughts when Dean grunted in pain and witnessed the man grab his head.

"Dean!" He cried out along with Bobby and reached out his arms to prevent the man from falling off of the Impala. Bobby was on the other side of Dean and sharing a look, they came to a small truce for the moment.

It was clear that they both cared deeply for the Winchester brothers.

Dean cried out again and they lowered him to the ground, worried.

"You with us?" Bobby asked, frowning in concern when it seemed that it was over.

"I-I saw something."

"Like a vision? Like what Sam gets?"

"No, nothing like that." Dean denied but his expression soon changed from agony to urgency after another vision attacked his mind. Harry was reminded of the times his scar would cause him agony when he received images from Voldemort. "Sam. I saw Sam."

"So it was a vision?"

"Yeah, but I don't know how." Dean said gruffly, breathing hard. "But yeah."

"What else did you see?"

Hope began to rekindle within them when Bobby showed some recognition of the place that Dean had seen in his vision and they immediately headed out. They didn't voice it but all three occupants in the car were hoping that it wasn't going to be too late when they got there.

Harry alone hoped that he'd regain some strength and his magic by the time they get there. He had a very strong feeling that they were going to need it.

One hour before they could reach the abandoned ghost town, the Impala crashed into an invisible barrier and they were all thrown forward from the impact. Cursing, Dean threw open his car door and seconds later were joined by Bobby and Harry.

Harry placed a hand tentatively on the barrier and resisted a flinch when he felt the power behind it lick at his hand. He pulled his hand away and took a step back, wary of the wall.

"What the hell?" Bobby asked as he too lifted a hand to touch the barrier. "A barrier?"

Dean growled and without any hint of what he was going to do, he threw his fist at the invisible wall only to bite back a cry of surprise and pain when it lashed out at him with crackling energy. Harry immediately pulled Dean away and took a look at the man's hand.

His hand was cracked and blistered from the barrier's defense and he nodded in thanks when Bobby gave him the first aid kit. Despite the older Winchester trying to shake him off, he glared at the man until he remained still and let him bandage his hand.

"How are we going to get in?" Dean asked in aggravation, restraining himself from ramming himself against the barrier. He paced in front of it like a caged animal, growling in anger for not being able to get to where he wanted to be.

Beyond the barrier lay Cold Oak where Sam was currently being held and desperation was clawing at them as each second passed by with them not being able to get any closer. There was only one thing left to do.

"Get back." Harry instructed them, tapping into his magic core when they obeyed his order. Praying that he had regained a sufficient amount to pull off what he planned to do, he began gathering his magic and channeling it into his wand.

"Harry," he heard Dean call his name but he ignored it and concentrated on lifting up his wand towards the barrier.

"_Diffindo_."

The jet of compact magic flew from his wand and it hit the barrier straight on, creating a clash of powers upon impact. Harry gritted his teeth from effort and pushed, feeling his magic draining from his very being but refusing to give up.

Minutes passed and he could feel the barrier beginning to slowly crack despite its resistance. Feeling encouraged, he placed the last of his strength into breaking the barricade and cried out in triumph when it finally shattered. Crackling magic filled the area and the three men found themselves flying backwards from the force it emitted before the pieces vanished completely.

Immediately the tainted magic that was trapped within rushed out and it washed over Harry's form, suffocating him. His nearly depleted magic pulsed within him in a sign of disgust but it was too weak to fend it off. It felt revolting and he would cringe if he had the energy to but at the moment, he couldn't move even if his life depended on it.

"What did you do?" Bobby asked in amazement, raising at hand to touch the air where the barrier was only minutes before.

Dean went over to Harry's side and picked him up when he realized that Harry didn't have the strength to move. He knew that he should feel mortified at how easily the man had lifted him, cradling him in his arms but all he could feel was relief as he tried to burrow into the man, focusing on the man's presence instead of the taint that surrounded him.

"I broke the barrier." He answered in puffs of breath, his wand hanging limply from his hand. "We need to hurry. Sam."

With the mention of the Winchester in trouble, they quickly jumped into action; running back towards the car. Harry was set carefully in the backseat and quickly they were off, racing towards the town. He could feel the curious gazes that Bobby was giving Dean and himself but paid it no mind.

His concerns laid solely on Sam's wellbeing and hoped that they'd arrive on time. His gut was clenching in a way that told him that something terrible was going to happen soon and he could only wish that his instincts were wrong.

Dean pulled to a stop and opening the door, he turned his attention to Harry.

"Stay here." He instructed and Harry narrowed his eyes at the man. There was no way in hell that he was going to lay around while he waited for them to find Sam.

"No, I'm not." He responded, struggling to get up and pull at the car handle. He cursed the weakness running through his body and forced his limbs to follow his instructions. "Go on ahead, Dean. Sam could be in trouble."

And Sam was, he could feel it in his weary bones. Dean hesitated for only a brief moment before taking off, Bobby quickly following after.

He struggled to breathe with the tainted air all around him and he stumbled his way after them. An hour of rest did his body no good and he could feel his legs threatening to collapse beneath him.

Only for a few more minutes, Harry thought. Just until I know that Sam is safe.

With that as his motivation, he trekked on and came to a stop when he was a few feet away from Bobby and Dean.

"Sam!" Dean cried out when they caught sight of the younger Winchester walking towards them and Harry could see a small relieved smile appear on Sam's face.

"Dean!" He called back and Harry watched in horror when a man in army slacks came up from behind him holding what appeared to be a very deadly looking knife.

"Sam, watch out!" Dean yelled as Harry raised his wand.

"_Expelliarmus!_" He cried out but only a small spark emitted from his wand at his attempt, his magic was far too depleted for him to use.

Shock replaced their horror when Tribbles launched itself from wherever it was hiding on Sam's body towards the army man's face, startling the man enough for him to jerk backwards away from the youngest hunter. Twisting around, Sam knocked the knife out of the man's hand and punched the man but it seemed to have no effect.

Dean was already running towards them along with Bobby while Harry was forced to watch helplessly from afar. He knew he could provide no help with the condition he was in. He couldn't even walk properly.

It all happened as if time had slowed. Grabbing Tribbles, the army man threw it towards Dean and before they knew what happened, he had grabbed Sam's head and with a sickening crack, he had snapped his neck.

"Sammy!" Dean cried out in pure anguish and dropped to his knees to catch Sam before the young hunter could fall onto the harsh floor. The army man had taken off running but no one paid him any mind at the moment, caught up in the fact that Sam Winchester was dead.

Harry was stunned from where he was standing, disbelief coloring his features.

Sam's dead. The mantra was playing over and over in his mind while Dean was clutching onto his brother, muttering that Sam was going to be okay even though they all knew that he wouldn't be.

Sam's dead.

With a scream of pure agony, Harry fell down onto his knees while he clutched his head with his hands. Grief surged within him and clawed at his mind. He could feel the locked door he had created a couple of years ago beginning to crack under the onslaught of his anguish and he could only tighten his grip on his head.

Sam's dead.

He had promised himself that no more of his precious people would die and he had failed. Flashes from the past of his loved ones dead and cold upon the dirty ground after the final battle filled his mind and he clenched his eyes shut.

He was sure that Dean was crying and he could feel moisture welling up in his eyes as well.

Another scream erupted from his throat and he curled in on himself.

Sam was dead.

And he couldn't do a damn thing to have stopped it.

…

**A/N**: Um… so another cliffhanger. Sorry. But I kept my word and posted an update in three days. Success?

I really wanted to have Tribbles save the day but that would've completely thrown everything that I planned after this out of whack so sadly… Sam was destined to die.

The middle of the chapter was a bit difficult to write, with them searching for Sam and Part 1 of the confrontation of Harry and Bobby. Not too sure how this chapter turned out so if you have the time, tell me what you think and…

Thank you for the reviews and hoped you enjoy the chapter. ^-^

'Til next time.


	11. 10

Chapter 10

The room was shrouded in silence.

Harry stared numbly at the cold form of Sam Winchester from his spot on the cot while Dean's head was bowed low while he held onto one of his little brother's hand.

From what Harry had gathered, he had passed out from exhaustion and mental trauma not too long after Sam's death and it was Bobby who had carried him to the car while Dean took care of his brother. When they got back to the safe house, Dean had stayed by his side until he had woken up and once he was sure that Harry was okay, he had moved to sit next to his brother and there he remained.

It's been nearly a day and a half since Sam had died in the abandoned cursed town and time had done nothing but enforce that this was their reality, drilling into them that this wasn't some horrible nightmare that they could awaken from.

Tribbles laid quietly on Harry's lap, flicking its tongue out now and then against Harry's hand in an attempt to comfort its owner but it was to no avail. The pair was lost in a sea of despair and there was no lifeboat anywhere in sight.

Harry knew that Dean was feeling the lost more keenly than Harry was. The death of his brother must've left a gaping hole in the pit of his stomach and it left him with the inability to breathe properly since everything in the world had now been a skewed. Dean took his responsibilities as an older brother seriously and it must kill the man for being unable to do a thing to save his brother. And if there was any way for Dean to bring Sam back to life, Harry knew without a single doubt that the man would do it in a heartbeat.

Swaying slightly on his feet, he pushed himself away from the cot and slowly made his way towards Dean, leaving Tribbles behind on the cot.

"Dean," he called out softly when he was standing next to the hunter. He laid his arm around the grieving hunter's shoulder and in response, Dean raised one of his hands and wrapped it around his waist, pulling him close. Tentatively, he brought the hunter's head towards his chest and hugged him close, offering him the only thing he could.

Comfort.

There was no need for words for no words were going to able to soothe Dean's emotional turmoil. Saying that '_everything was going to be okay'_ wasn't going to help matters because everything _wasn't_ okay and it felt like it wasn't going to be for a long while.

It could've been hours that passed since Harry had drawn Dean into a hug but they either didn't notice or cared. Finally Dean cleared his throat, loosening his grip on Harry's waist.

"C-can you give me and Sam some time alone?" He asked, his voice hoarse.

"Of course." Harry replied softly, slowly withdrawing from the man. He shivered slightly from the loss of heat and gave a halfhearted smile when the hunter wrapped his leather jacket around Harry's form. "I'm not a bloody girl." He said but drew it closer to his form nonetheless.

"Didn't say you were." Dean answered, his small smile forced. He lifted his hand to run it through Harry's unruly head and drew him close, giving the small wizard a chaste kiss.

Pulling away, Harry made his way out of the front door and collapsed onto the top of the steps. The warmth that his body had accumulated was quickly seeping from his being and he shivered when a gust of wind blew by him. Seeing Dean so lost and vulnerable, Harry closed his eyes and tried to draw forth the strength and rationality that he would need for the both of them.

A high pitched squeak from Tribbles dragged him away from his thoughts and he looked down at the small creature that peered up at him with its own teary emerald green eyes. Apparently it had rolled after him and had been by his side since he had come out. Picking it up, he placed it on his lap where they both lapsed into silence.

It was the sound of a car pulling up and a door opening that drew Harry's attention and his eyes met the form of one Bobby Singer when he looked up. From his point of view, he could see the grief practically emanating from the man who was also feeling the lost of the youngest Winchester but it quickly faded as it gave way to the wariness when his own eyes met Harry's.

The temporary truce that they had had obviously ended and it was going to take a little more facts straightened out before the old hunter would even think about placing his trust on Harry.

"What are you doing out here?" The man asked him gruffly, his stance ready in case of an attack from Harry's part but Harry took it all in stride. In a way, it was helping his thoughts clear up much faster and granted him a small reprieve from reality. Even if it was to defend his innocence.

"Dean wanted some time alone with Sam." He answered, taking Tribbles in hand when the elder hunter glanced at it with a discernable look. The man held no gun in hand at the time but there was never telling what he was capable of.

"I think it's a good time for us to talk." Bobby said grimly and Harry nodded in acceptance only for his reflexes to kick in seconds later to catch the flask that was thrown at him. He gave the man a questioning look, making no moves to open it. "Drink it."

He raised a brow at the man. He didn't seriously think that Harry was going to drink it without knowing what it was, did he?

"It's holy water and feed it to that furball as well."

Harry frowned before tossing it back at the man.

"You first." He was considered reckless by many people, but it didn't mean that he was going to drink some unknown substance in a flask he couldn't see through. Bobby took a gulp before throwing it back. Watching the man to see if he was going to combust into flames or anything of the sort for a few seconds, he tipped the flask back and took a drink.

It was… water.

_Holy water_. A voice much like Severus corrected him in his mind but never the less, it was a bit anticlimactic. Indeed the elder hunter did say holy water and the man did _not_ burst into flames, but he had half expected something to happen. Feeding Tribbles a small amount, Tribbles licked it up with no problems.

Still far from trusting, Bobby's guardedness remained steady. After all, all that the test proved was that Harry was not possessed by a demon.

"Natural born wizard, huh?" Bobby questioned. "Forgive me if I think it's a load of crock." Harry smiled a bit in amusement.

"Of all the most unbelievable beings that can or cannot exist in this world, you choose natural born wizards to be the one thing that can't be possible?" Harry asked. "Or is it the fact that you don't want to believe that we're just as human as you except we have the aid of magic within us?"

"It's not natural." Bobby argued and it brought Harry back to the days when he was still living with the Dursleys.

_Freakish._ The word vibrated through his mind and he pushed it back. How he hated that word in that context.

"And from another point of view, it's _unnatural_ that you don't have magic." Harry pointed out which caused the man to scowl.

"What do you plan on doing?"

"Same thing as you," Harry answered. "To put a stop to what's going on over here."

"How many of your kind are here?"

"To put a stop to this? Just me," Harry said, recalling Kingsley's words. "Those in favor of whatever's going on, I'm not exactly sure yet." His eyes met the older hunter's. "But regardless of the facts, it's evident that we're working towards the same goal and it's to stop the impending war to occur."

There was a brief moment of silence as Bobby organized his thoughts while Harry waited patiently.

"Say if I believe you, how do I know that you won't turn on us?"

"You don't." Harry answered honestly. There was no definite proof he could provide the man of his loyalty. "But I won't." His eyes shown with his conviction and sparkling with sincerity. "One war is enough, there shouldn't be another to cause needless pain and suffering."

A small sliver of understanding seemed to pass through them and Bobby nodded slightly.

"What about Dean?" He asked.

"What about Dean?" Harry questioned back only to have the man give him a pointed look. "We're…" He paused, there were no words at the moment that could clearly describe what they were to each other and the fact that he didn't know if Dean wanted Bobby to know about their relationship. However tentative it was. "Friends." He finished, deciding on half truths.

The look on the other man's face showed that he wasn't fooled for a second by Harry's placating term of 'friends'.

"And Dean accepts you? No offense, kid, but the boy was raised by his daddy who was determined to rid the world of the supernatural."

"He said that he's accepted it." Harry answered firmly, choosing to believe in Dean's words.

Another moment of silence.

"You care for him." It was a statement more than a question.

"I'd risk my life for him," was the reply.

"You hurt him and I'll pump you full of rock salt, you hear me?"

Harry suppressed an urge to sigh. Why did people always have the desire to threaten him bodily harm?

"I hear you." He said and that was that. A more stable truce was in place.

"Let's go in." The older hunter said grumpily, rather reluctant to invite him in as well but Harry took it as a good sign that the man bothered to at all. He slowly got up to his feet and followed the man into the house where he was instantly reminded of the situation before him.

…

Harry's eyes snapped open from his short nap when he felt something was horribly wrong and never the one to doubt his instincts, he quickly got up to search for the older Winchester to find that the man was no where within the house. Running outside, he noticed that the Impala was gone and cursed a violent streak.

Sam remained where he was placed and a food run was out of the question with the stash that Bobby had left on the table. It occurred to him that maybe Dean was out driving to clear his head but he doubted it, not with the way his gut churned and flopped with anxiety.

His heart was pounding a mile a minute and remembering the cell phone that Sam had given him, he rushed back inside to grab it before calling Dean's cell. He bit his bottom lip in worry when it automatically sent him to voicemail and he hung up.

Hearing a car pull up, he immediately dashed outside to find it was only Bobby with Dean nowhere in sight.

"Bobby!" He called out to the man, clutching onto the phone. "Do you know where Dean is?"

"He's missing?" The old hunter asked, his frame tensed. "He could be out for a drive. That boy isn't that stu-" He broke off midsentence and cursed. "Dammit, he just might be."

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, his magic practically humming from his apprehension.

"Get in the truck," Bobby ordered and sensing the urgency of the matter, he obeyed without question. Within seconds they were taking off down the road and Harry had to hang on for dear life.

"What's going on?" He asked, hoping that the man would provide him the answer.

"Dean might be off making a deal to sell his soul." Bobby said, clenching his teeth.

"A deal?" Harry repeated faintly and his eyes widened as the rest of Bobby's words sunk in. "He's going to sell his soul?" As soon as he uttered the dreaded question, he knew without a doubt that that was exactly what Dean was planning on doing and it felt like his heart was going to burst out of his chest from the anticipation he was feeling.

It felt like the car was going entirely far too slow. His magic rose up from within him and he could feel it waiting for him to use it.

"I'm going on ahead." He announced to the man and without a further noticed, he popped out of the car and directed his magic to bring him to where Dean was located. The tainted magic was batted away from him by his own without much of Harry's knowledge as he was too focused on reaching Dean on time.

When he popped into existence, the wild magic there was more heavy than usual and he knew immediately that there was a demon in the proximity. He rushed towards where it was the heaviest and stopped dead in his tracks.

There in the center of what appeared to be a crossroad, Dean and a woman (_demon_, his magic flickered in annoyance) were kissing. It had lasted only a couple of seconds and the demon pulled back with a satisfied smile on its face.

"It's a sealed deal, Dean."

It was those words that brought Harry back into action. He tried to ignore the taste of bitterness in the back of his throat. Whether it was from witnessing Dean kissing the demon or from him being unable to prevent the deal, he didn't know. It was probably both.

"Wait!" He called out and Dean whirled around in shock to face him.

"Harry," the hunter began but he cut him off with a glacial glare.

"What deal?" He asked the demon and its smirked widen.

"Why if it isn't Harry Potter," it said, making to approach him but stopped in its tracks when Dean blocked Harry from its view with his body. Harry wasn't going to stand for that and step sided away so he could see the demon. "I normally wouldn't waste my time sticking around but if it's for you, I don't mind."

"What deal?" Harry questioned again, his wand drawn.

"Deanie here," it said, waving its hand towards the elder Winchester. "He sold his soul to bring little Sammy back." Harry grew cold at the admission and he tightened his grip on his wand.

"Sold?"

"He doesn't need to know." Dean cut in but Harry and the demon both ignored him, too busy staring each other down.

"Within a year, Deanie boy is going to be sent to hell and-"

"Shut up!" Dean yelled, moving threateningly towards the demon but it stepped back.

"Uh uh, you wouldn't want to do that." It said, waving a finger back and forth tauntingly at Dean. Harry felt the helplessness growing within him. Even if Sam came back to life, how would he feel knowing that Dean had sold his soul for him? It would break Sam and as selfish as it sounded, Harry didn't want to go through a similar experience where instead of Dean, he would be comforting Sam for the lost of Dean. He didn't think his mind would be able to take it.

"Can you undo the deal?" He asked and the demon smiled in a way that showed that it had been waiting for him to ask that very question.

"I could." It said slowly. "If you take his place."

"No," Dean cried out but before he knew it, Harry had stunned him and slowly eased him onto the ground. His hand trailed along the man's cheek gently and sorrowful eyes quickly changed to determination when he turned to face the demon. He had failed to protect Sam but it was a chance to protect Dean and save Sam.

"If I take his place," he began carefully. "Dean's deal is canceled and Sam is brought back to life with his soul intact."

"Of course," it purred. "Dean's contract with be annulled and little Sammy will be brought back good as new, but unfortunately, I can only offer you six months."

He furrowed his brows.

"You gave Dean a year."

"Yes, but as much as the demons down there would love to grab a hold of him, you are the one that holds everyone's interest." It said, running a finger down Harry's face and he slapped it away from him in irritation. "Take it or leave it. If you don't, Dean will die in a year where he'll be dragged to hell for all eternity. Either way I already have completed what I was summoned for."

His resistance broke and he felt himself give into the demon's words.

"All right." He forced the words out, his mind set. "I'll make the deal." 

"Excellent." The demon said and stalked up close to Harry but Harry stepped back, glaring at it.

"I want you to repeat the deal."

"As you wish," it said obligingly. "Dean's contract will be absolved and Sam will be brought back to life with his soul intact. With a kiss, our contract is sealed and you'll only have six months to live. Is it a deal?"

"Yes." And with that small murmur of agreement, Harry bit back the disgust he was feeling when the demon drew him into a kiss. His magic pulsed from fury but it refrained from lashing out, opting to swirl around in a mass of angry energy.

The demon drew back with a satisfied smile and licked its lips.

"It's a sealed deal." It said once more that night and without further ado, it threw back its host's head and the black stream of demon entity flew out from her mouth. The woman fell to the ground with a soft thump and Harry felt a sliver of guilt for not catching her except he was too busy watching the black smoke vanish while the reality of his situation finally sunk in.

He had sold his soul.

Another thought struck him.

He was going to die in six months.

Waving his wand over Dean's body, he casted the _ennervate_ spell and watched with an eye of a spectator as the man groaned. He could almost see when the fog lifted away from the man's mind and he took it all in stride when blazing hazel-green eyes bore into him.

"What did you do?" The older man demanded, fear evident in his eyes. Harry offered a small shrug.

"I traded my soul for yours." He answered distantly. "Apparently my soul trumps yours." He added with a tiny hint of humor in his tone.

"That's not funny." Dean said, grabbing onto Harry's shoulders to make him look Dean in the eyes. "Why?" He asked the small wizard. "Sam is my responsibility, not yours."

Harry flung the hands off of him and he backed up with a cold look in his eyes, peering up at the man.

"Exactly." He said. "And you won't be able to do a single damn bloody thing if you're dead and buried. Sam's your responsibility and now you'll be able to continue to do your damn job."

"How long?" Dean asked after several minutes of silence, getting frustrated when Harry pretended that he did not understand the question. "How long do you have?" The hunter asked again and Harry looked away from him when he answered.

"Six months. I'll be dead in six months."

Without warning, Dean grabbed Harry into a tight hug and held on for all he was worth. Harry's arms remained limp at his side but he eventually raised his arms up and wrapped it around the man's waist.

"You're an idiot." Dean mumbled, hiding his face in Harry's messy hair. "You're such an idiot. Why would you do such a thing?"

Assuming that it was a rhetorical question, Harry remained silent and laid his head against Dean's chest to listen to the man's heartbeat. They stayed still in their position for a little while longer until Harry pulled away, remembering the other hunter that was searching for Dean.

"You should call Bobby and give him a heads up." He informed the elder Winchester. "He was looking for you as well."

With a nod, Dean pulled out his cell phone and turned it on, his hand never leaving its spot from around Harry's waist while they walked towards the Impala. Once sitting in the car, Harry felt like it was years ago when everything wasn't so complicated and they were happy and content.

The ride back was silent with Dean focused on driving back with his eyes once in a while flickering to Harry and Harry was lost in thought. Watching the scenery fly by, Harry focused on clearing his jumbled thoughts and worked out his feelings.

He didn't know what will happen once his six months were up but he knew that he couldn't have let Dean die. He wasn't one to stand around and let his friends and loved ones die if he could do anything about it and with that thought, it cleared up all of his doubts and worries and replaced it with a purpose.

If he was going to die, he was going to make sure that the months he had left would not be filled with distress and mourning. Glancing over at Dean, he gave the man a small smile and entwined his hand with the other man's.

"Let's go see Sam." He said gently and in response, Dean pressed on the gas and they flew down the road, letting their worries and fears wash away for the moment.

…

"Sammy?" Dean called out as soon as they got into the house. "Sam?"

"In here." Sam's voice replied and together, Harry and Dean rushed into the room where Sam's body had lain still for two days now to find a well and breathing Sam Winchester with a squeaking Tribbles in hand. His snapped neck was fixed and he had a healthy hue around him that signified that he was _alive_.

They rushed at him and gave him a hug, clinging onto him like he was their lifeline and he tentatively hugged them back, confusion marring his face.

"I'm glad to see you guys too," he said when they drew back. "What happened? I thought that Jake…" he trailed off.

"He just knocked you unconscious, thought he killed you and took off running." Dean explained without missing a beat. Sam gave him a dubious look but he seemed willing to believe him. Harry wondered for how long and smiled brightly at Sam when he looked over at him.

Bobby came into the house then and his face showed his disbelief before he hid it behind a mask. When Sam excused himself to go take a shower, placing Tribbles on the table, the oldest hunter of the three rounded on Dean and demanded to know what Dean had done.

Dean had failed to mention the deal on the phone, opting to just telling the elder man that he was fine.

"Dammit, Dean. Did you sell your soul to bring Sam back?"

"No," Harry cut in, absentmindedly petting Tribbles. "I did." With that small confession, Bobby demanded to know all the details and by the end of the explanation, he was looking at Harry in a whole new light. Sort of.

"You're an idjit." Bobby said and Harry was unsure who he was insulting exactly.

"Doesn't matter now." Harry said. "At least Sam's alive."

And that led the conversation to an end because Harry was right even though there was going to be a terrible cost to be paid.

…

Several hours later, Harry found that the situation at hand had gone from bad to worst. He fought against the restrains that were holding him pinned to a gravestone and tried to not have the experience overlap with the ones from fourth year.

His wand laid a couple of feet away from him, having been tossed away by Dean when Jake had mind controlled him. When they had arrived back to Bobby's, the Winchesters and Bobby were in for a surprise when they found Ellen waiting for them.

With a quick shot glass test of holy water, she was invited into the house where she had informed them what Ash had found out about the demon that the Winchesters had been hunting for years now. With the knowledge of where Sam's murderer was heading, they quickly raced off towards the cemetery and there they had lain in wait for the man in question.

All wasn't as easy as they hoped since it seemed that the man had known that they were there and with powers that they weren't aware of, he had body controlled Dean to knock the wand out of Harry's hand and to pin him to the ground while Ellen was forced to point her own gun at her head.

Caught off guard, Sam and Bobby were forced to yield and with an arrogant smirk, Jake had managed to open the Gates of Hell with the Colt where all hell broke loose. Literally.

At the moment, Jake was dead, shot by an unmerciful Sam but now they had more pressing problems now that the gate was open and the fact that the Yellow-Eyed Demon had them pinned. The Colt was held in the demon's possession, having summoned it from Dean and he pointed it idly at the older Winchester with a pleased smirk on his face.

"Well, well. I've heard you've managed to accomplish something that was deemed nearly impossible. Many have tried and failed but you, you succeeded in killing the Boy-Who-Lived." He mocked. "I got to thank you though, Sammy couldn't have been brought back to life if a deal wasn't made but look at him now, Sammy's back! He's always been my favorite." He leant in closer towards the hunter. "How does it feel that because of your self-sacrificial ways, you've sentenced someone to death?"

"Shut up!" Harry snapped when he saw how the words had an effect on Dean, drawing the demon's attention away from the hunter. Thankfully Sam was too far away to hear the demon's cruel taunting words.

"Oh, they're going to love you down there." The demon said. "They're eagerly awaiting for your arrival. It's a pity though; I would've loved to keep you as a pet." It raked its eyes along Harry's body and he couldn't help feeling violated. "I have to say, the Winchesters have good taste in choosing who they keep around."

Harry just growled, struggling with the invisible bonds. His magic pulsed from anger at being restrained but it was no use, the demon's hold held strong and didn't weaken in the slightest from his attempts.

"It was fun while it lasted Dean." The Yellow-Eyed Demon said, standing up from its kneeling position. "But thanks a bunch, I knew I kept you alive for a reason. Until now anyway. None of this could've happened without your pathetic, self-loathing, self-destructive desire to sacrifice yourself for your family."

"No!" Harry cried out when he saw the demon click the safety switch off but before it could pull the trigger, an apparition appeared from behind him and caught it off guard. The black smoke that was the demon unwillingly flew out of its host's body and Harry was immediately released from the invisible force that held him still.

Grabbing the dropped Colt, Harry quickly tossed it to Dean just as the demon knocked their savior aside and flew back into its host. A look of shock crossed its face when he saw the gun in the experienced hunter's hand and with an explosive bang, Dean pulled the trigger and the bullet lodged itself into the center of the demon's heart.

It stood there stunned for a moment and seconds later, what looked like electricity running through its body, a small implosion occurred from within and it collapsed backwards onto the ground. Yellow eyes flashed before fading, leaving behind a dull shade of black.

The sound of the gate closing seemed to echo all around them, signifying that Ellen and Bobby had managed to effectively close the gate and the sudden silence was deafening. From the spot on the ground, Harry watched as Dean hesitantly walked over to the man, trying to remember where he'd seen the man before.

Harry held back a gasp when it came to him.

John Winchester. He had seen the man's picture in Dean's wallet when he had stolen it not to long after he had joined them to irritate the man.

A proud smile adorned the man's face and when Dean was close enough, he clasped him on his shoulder. Peering over at Sam, the youngest Winchester gave him a small nod; all the while not a single word passed but it was understood, words were unneeded.

Seeing the man glance over at Harry, he straightened up a bit and found to his surprise that the man still wore his proud and gentle smile. He gave a nod of gratitude towards Harry who offered a small smile of his own and with that, John Winchester turned his attention back to his sons to look at them for one last time. With a tear running down his cheek, he began to back away until a flash of light engulfed him and he disappeared. Leaving no evidence that he was ever there.

It was truly a deserved moment of silence.

…

It was a while later when they were walking back to the Impala when the dreaded question left Sam's lips.

"Did I die?"

Harry froze in his tracks besides Dean and he guiltily tried to avoid Sam's gaze.

"What are you talking about, Sammy?" Dean asked, trying to pull off the clueless approach but Sam was far from fooled.

"When Jake first saw me, he looked like he saw a ghost." He paused and thought while Harry shuffled around on his feet. "Dean, what did you do? Did you sell your soul to save me?"

"No," Dean denied but Sam didn't let up. Harry felt Dean's eyes flit towards his form for a brief second before it went back to face Sam but Sam wasn't a hunter for nothing. He didn't miss the minor glance and the way Harry refused to look at him.

"H-Harry?" He asked quietly, his voice holding a small quality of the trepidation that he felt. Harry slowly lifted his eyes until it met hazel-browns and that was all it took for Sam to reach the correct conclusion. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"Because I wanted to." He answered, not going deep into an explanation. Dean laid a hand on the small of his back and drew him close. No, Sam didn't need to know all of the details.

"How long did you get?" Sam asked when he realized Harry wasn't going to say anything more. Dean's hand tensed a bit and he gathered his infamous Gryffindor bravery to get him through this.

"Six months." He answered quietly, peering up at the younger Winchester.

"No," Sam said in denial. "Why would you do that? Why would you give up your life?"

Because I didn't want Dean to give up his. Harry was about to answer but stopped himself since he knew that that wasn't entirely true.

"To save two lives." He answered instead which held more truth than he thought possible. To save Sam would save Dean in the end and to save Dean would save Sam. It was a neverending cycle with those two.

The answer seemed to have taken aback Sam but Harry continued on.

"It is how it is." Harry said, a small smile on his face. "I'm fine with it and it isn't anyone's fault. I did it because I wanted to do it. After all, death is but the next great adventure to the sound mind." It amused him that he was echoing the words his old mentor had uttered long ago.

"But-"

"But nothing. There's nothing else to be said about the deal." He broke out of Dean's grip and spun to face the both of them. "It may be short but that just means we'll have to make the most of it. There's simply no time to mope around when we should be enjoying life when we can."

Done, he turned around to open the car door but Sam's words stopped him.

"I'm not letting it end like that." He said. "I, no, we are going to find a way to break the contract." He corrected himself when he looked over at Dean. "You always were the one who had to save people, but this time, we'll be the one to save you. No matter what, we'll get you out of this. Besides, you're as good as family now and we don't abandon our family." He added and Harry couldn't help but blush.

He didn't dare look over at Dean but he couldn't help a wide smile from spreading across his face when the older Winchester wrapped an arm around him and held him close once more.

Everything may be starting to go to Hell all around them but at least, for the moment, they could pretend that they were okay.

…

**A/N**: Done! The end seems a bit rushed, don't you think? =/ Hmm… Maybe I'll go back to fix it someday but for now, I'll be leaving it as is. This chapter was a whole lot harder to write than I thought it would be! Oh man.

Oh! I would also like to thank all those that commented and reviewed, it made my day. =]

Like always, if you feel up to it, tell me what you think and thanks for reading!


	12. 11

Chapter Eleven

_Harry was surrounded by darkness and the only thing that kept him company was the red glowing eyes of that of Voldemort. The man's gleeful cackle echoed all around and his stare seemed to bore into Harry's very soul. Harry tried to not let the hint of hunger and revenge he could detect from those eyes intimidate him and glared right back at his enemy, refusing to appear vulnerable. _

"_I look forward in seeing you in Hell." Voldemort's snakelike voice emerged from the darkness, wrapping around his form. "Me and you, Potter. We were always destined to meet again."_

…

"Harry, wake up!"

Harry woke up with a start, clamping his hand over his previous dormant scar in hopes of alleviating the familiar pain he thought he would never feel again. He was disoriented and tried to focus on the voice that was calling him.

"D-Dean?" He asked, dazed. He felt the man attempt to pry his hand away from his forehead and heard the older Winchester give a small hiss when he saw what laid underneath.

"You're bleeding. Probably scratched it open with all of your thrashing." Dean said, his hands tightening their grip on Harry's wrists. "Sit still. I'm gonna go get some bandages."

Harry was left alone then and he tried to reign in his thoughts, recalling the dream. Or was it vision? He wasn't sure but all he knew was that his connection with Voldemort was back. Reconnected through the deal that he had made not even a week ago to save Sam and Dean.

He sighed, grimacing when his hand subconsciously rose up and rubbed at his forehead. He brought it back down to see blood. His scar had reopened. If he was truly honest with himself, he wasn't too surprised. As long as their souls still survived in any plane of existence, they were still very much entwined. It just took a deal with a demon to speed up their impending meeting.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Dean came back and gently began to wipe away the excess blood that was slowly dripping down Harry's face. Dean may act tough on the exterior and to the public but the man was an actually softy to those he actually cared about.

Trying to turn his face away from the gentle wipes, his face was carefully grasped and brought back so that the Winchester could continue cleaning him up. He blushed at the nearly loving caresses and raised his hands to ward the man away.

"I can do it myself, Dean." Harry protested, trying and failing to retrieve the wet cloth.

"You can hardly coordinate your hands, how do you expect to do it?" He asked and realizing the futility of it all, he sat still to let Dean bandage him up. All of which he endured with a pout adorning his face.

"There, that wasn't too bad, was it?" The older man questioned when he finished dressing up Harry's scar. He looked at the smaller man with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Would the patient like a lollypop?"

Harry eyed Dean with a suspicious look.

"I hope you mean the candy kind."

"Of course I did." Dean pulled an exaggerated hurt and offended look. "What kind of man do you take me for?"

"The kind of man who likes to think with his downstairs brain." Harry responded drolly before he winched slightly from the slight throb that was still emitting from his scar. That was something he clearly didn't miss.

"Are you okay?"

He nodded as he felt concerned hands tentatively pull him towards a warm body and for once since he has woken up, he noticed how cold he was. He burrowed in, leeching the warmth that emanating from the man.

"Want to tell me what you were dreaming about to make you take it out on your scar?" Harry shrugged lightly.

"It was just a nightmare." He said hesitantly. Better to let him think that he did it than the real reason. The two Winchester brothers were worried enough about the deal, he didn't want to add further fuel to the fire by telling them of what exactly was waiting for him in Hell if and when he got there.

"Must've been some nightmare." Harry shrugged once again.

"Where's Sam?" He asked in a desperate attempt to change the subject and to his relief, Dean relented.

"He went to check on some idea he has." Dean said, not elaborating on what exactly Sam was doing but he didn't need to. Harry knew that Sam was out looking for a way to free him from the deal.

Harry frowned in concern.

With the way Sam had been burning himself out day after day to search for a solution, he was worried that the taller Winchester was going to collapse from exhaustion. He made a mental note to talk to Sam when he could get the man alone.

He laid his head on Dean's chest, listening to the hypnotic heartbeat beneath. The pain from his scar had finally faded and he began to feel drowsy as Dean ran a hand through his messy hair, massaging him along the way. He curled up closer to the hunter, nearly purring from the sensation.

He could feel the tension running underneath the calm that Dean exude and knew that the man was keeping up the act to appear strong for _him_. His heart clenched at the thought. He didn't appreciate the gesture at all when it was tearing the man apart inside.

Twisting around to face Dean, he ran his hands up teasingly along the hunter's sides and a pleased smile emerged on his face when he felt him shiver from the stimulation. It wasn't going to solve the problem but it would be a nice distraction at the very least.

"You know, it's been a while since we've done anything." Harry said with a small smile, throwing a leg over Dean's lap so that he would be straddling the man.

"Is that so?" Dean responded, a crooked grin slowly spreading across his face. Harry hummed an agreement as Dean drew his face close, sealing their lips in a kiss. His skin tingled in delight when he felt Dean move his hand from his head to his lower back and after a hesitating second, it slid down where it happily began to grope his butt.

He squeaked in surprise at the action before he relaxed, nipping the man's bottom lip in reprimand but only managed to draw a pleasured moan instead. Fingering the bottom edges of Dean's shirt, he slipped his hands inside to map out the man's muscles and pressed himself close.

He could feel the hunter growing hard underneath him and he grounded down, producing a groan from Dean. He gasped when his own erection brushed against the other's stomach, creating a pleasured quiver to run through him. He could feel the underlying tension fading away from the hunter as he thrusted upwards to get the delicious friction that was slowly drawing them close to the edge.

They broke off the kiss and Dean began pressing kisses along the column of his neck, starting close to his ear and trailing down to the crook of his neck. Harry moaned, tilting his head to the side to allow the man more access and dragged the other's shirt up as he moved his hand to clutch at his broad shoulders.

Two hands were now groping him and using his butt as leverage, he was lifted upwards where their lips met once again. Harry whimpered into the kiss, almost desperately trying to mold his body into Dean's only so he could recreate the friction between them.

Sensing Harry's need, Dean lowered him, moving his hands from his bottom to his waist and they began to grind against each other in a mockery of what could be coming sometime in the future. Heat was coiling within him as he felt Dean's clothed erection rub against his clothed bottom and he moaned in want. Feeling himself get close, Harry's hand fisted into the hunter's short hair and drew him into a deep kiss just as he came in the confine of his pants. Dean tensed not seconds later and he knew that the older man had came as well.

Drawing apart, they were both panting for breath with a satisfied aura around them. Harry laid his head down on Dean's chest and soon, arms were wrapped around him.

A grumble from Harry's stomach broke their blissful moment and his cheeks reddened when Dean chuckled.

"Hungry?"

"Starving." He admitted only to grimace when he tried to move. Their previous activity was great but the aftermath, when not cleaned up, was not. "But first, I gotta go shower first." Dean seemed to perk up at the thought.

"Need any help?" Harry laughed, getting off of Dean.

"Nice try," he said, bending over to give the man a light kiss on the lips. "You can have the shower after me." It almost looked like Dean was pouting but the hunter probably would never admit to it.

"Why do you get the shower first?"

"Because you're so generous." He answered with a cheeky grin before shutting the bathroom door.

…

"So, it looks like you two enjoyed your time together." Sam said when he joined the two at the diner. Harry noted sadly that the man's eyes had darkened bags underneath them from the lack of sleep. They were in need of a talk and soon before Sam faded away before Harry himself did. He worked up a forced grin to continue the light mood that was upon them.

"We did." Harry answered, leering at Sam. "Would you like to know the explicit details? Dean's-"

"No!" Sam cried out, a horrified look on his face. "Please, no. I don't need the explicit details of what Dean does behind closed doors."

Harry mock pouted, trying to appear disappointed.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" The taller Winchester nearly shouted in desperation and Harry couldn't help but start laughing at his expression. Dean beside him was giving his brother an amused look and shook his head.

"Aw, Sammy. When are you gonna get it's a beautiful, natural act?"

"Yeah well, it's a part of you I never want to know about."

Harry snickered at the two's banter, missing when Dean gave Sam a questioning look only to receive a small nearly unnoticeable shake of the head. They still haven't found a solution to save Harry.

Harry's snickering stopped suddenly, sitting up so quickly that it made Dean go for his gun from pure reflex. The two brothers watched in shocked amusement when the small wizard wiggled down under the table and emerged on the opposite side next to Sam but Harry paid them no mind. He leaned over the seat to address the elderly man sitting on the table near them.

"Excuse me, sir?" Harry asked politely, drawing the man's attention from the paper in front of him. "Is it all right with you if I can borrow that section?"

"Sure," he agreed readily, having already read over the page. "Tragic, isn't it? I hope they find the monster responsible for this."

"Yes, I hope they do." Harry murmured, skimming the article when the man handed it over to him. "Thank you. I'll be sure to return it as soon as I finish."

"Take your time." The man assured him before he resumed his reading. Harry turned around to his own table, a troubled frown playing on the edge of his features.

"What's in the news that you had to practically throw yourself under the table to get to the kind old man?" Dean teased but the frown remained on Harry's face. He slowly placed the paper in the center of the table where they would all be able to see it.

There in the heading, in big bold letters, were the words:

**Tragic Grave Site Uncovered, Three Human Skeletons**

Reading the article, it went ahead to inform the public that it was the skeletons of three adult men. All dead within the week and the killer was a cannibal for the bones appeared to have been gnawed on by what appeared to be human teeth. It was disgusting as it was horrifying and the three shared a look.

It would be worth checking out.

…

Harry found himself trailing along the two Winchesters that were once again dressed up in their nice suits as they chatted up the coroner on what his thoughts were on the case of the human skeletons. He had refused to be left behind again and while Dean had tried to convince him that he would draw more questions to them if he were to role-play as well, he had solved the problem by performing the disillusionment charm.

The result from doing so produced a stunned and shocked silence from the two brothers and he undid the charm, knowing that it was a bit to take in. They may say that they've accepted him but seeing magic being done before them was probably unnerving.

It took a couple of seconds for Dean to react and he tugged the small wizard into his embrace, acknowledging that he was okay with it and a grin had broken out upon Harry's face when Sam began to question him on the mechanics of the charm.

Now, they were making their way out of the morgue with Dean now and then looking back to where Harry was even though the hunter wasn't able to see him. He brushed a hand against the man, silently motioning for him to pay attention to the job.

"I sincerely hope you find the person who did this, Detectives." The coroner said, stopping at the entrance. "The sooner you find who did this, the sooner the world would be a little safer."

"We'll do our best." Sam assured him, holding the door open for Harry who brushed past and headed towards the Impala. Once he was within the confines of the vehicle, he undid the spell and leaned against the front seat as Dean began to drive away.

"So, it's definitely a demon." Harry announced, idly petting Tribbles who was beside his head. It purred from the attention, emerald green eyes closing in bliss. The poor thing had been neglected for a while now with everything that was happening.

"How do you know?" Sam asked, peering over at the smaller man. There wasn't any physical evidence that it was anything but a human having cravings for the human flesh in the not so enjoyable way for the other party. "It could've been a crazed person."

"There was a mass of dark energy lingering over the bones." Harry said, wrinkling his nose. "It was dirty and tainted just like the other times that I've encountered a demon or a demon's minions."

"You can sense that?" The taller Winchester asked incredulously. Harry hummed an affirmative, resting his head upon his arm.

"They… pollute the magic around them." Harry said slowly, trying to come up with the best explanation. "And sometimes they leave residues behind."

"So if it's a demon, what is it exactly?" Dean wondered aloud. "We've dealt with demons before but they haven't exactly _eaten_ people. Well, not the way that this one is doing."

"I don't know but we're going to find out."

…

Their room was stacked with books and loose leaf paper from all the researching that they were doing. After Tribbles had nearly been squished to death twice by toppling books, Harry had placed the small creature on his pillow where it would remain safe by his side.

Two days had passed and another pile of bones had turned up. The unfortunate victim had also been a man.

Bobby had arrived into town a day ago, offering a hand in the hunt and his stacks of books that were obviously dangerous for Tribble's health and Harry's heart. Who knew that the man had so many books on demons that seemed determine on crushing his poor pygmy puff?

Closing the book he was reading, Harry got up and stretched. It had been hours since they began and stupid Dean had managed to get out of researching for a bit using the excuse of making a food run. He pouted at the thought of the hunter leaving him to fend for himself with the seemingly endless amount of books and two hunters that seemed all too content on going through them.

"_Sam_," he called rather pathetically, draping himself over said hunter. Bobby, who was sitting across from Sam, snorted in amusement when he glanced up but quickly resumed his reading.

"Harry?" Sam asked, glancing up in surprise. He wasn't at all affected by Harry leaning his full weight on him. He tried to look back to take a closer look at the smaller man but it was to no avail since Harry had hidden in face in the crook of his neck.

Harry didn't seem to say anything for a moment, seeming content on just arranging himself as if he was a baby koala clinging onto its mother's back. He let out a breath of air against Sam's neck, tickling the other man.

"How can you read for hours on end?" He complained, not letting go any time soon. "My brain feels like it's going to burst with all the information I've just accumulated." Sam chuckled.

"I'm, err, used to it." He said, going back to his reading. Harry sighed. With Sam's tendency to get lost in a book, it reminded him of Hermione. Always believing that all the answers in the world laid in books.

Clinging onto Sam, he could feel that the youngest hunter in the room was stretching himself thin. Underlying stress was evident along with guilt and sorrow marring the man's soul.

Harry hated that they were suffering from his sacrifice but if they had to go back, he would do it again in a heartbeat. It didn't mean that he necessarily wanted to go to hell but if it was to save the people he cared about, he would do anything. Guilt, he believed, shouldn't be a factor but it unfortunately was.

So caught up in his thoughts, he didn't hear when the door opened and Dean approached him.

"Is there something you're not telling me?" Dean's voice sounded right next to his ear and he started violently, clutching Sam tighter. Harry turned his eyes towards Dean and offered him a playful smile.

"There's always that possibility." He said while fluttering his eyelashes demurely. "I mean, Sam here doesn't abandon me when he's craving for some pie."

"Don't you insult pie." Dean said, making the other two occupants chuckle lightly. "Or else you won't get the treacle tart I got for you." Hearing his favorite dessert's name, he perked up as he eyed the bag that Dean dangled before his eyes.

"Treacle tart?" He asked, reaching out for it.

"Uh uh," the irritating hunter said with a grin, raising it well out of the shorter man's reach. "If you want it, you're gonna have to beg." Emerald green eyes widened in disbelief and he scowled before turning his attention back to the younger Winchester.

"_Sam_," he whined. "Tell Dean to stop being so mean to me." After all the tension and stress that's been floating around, it was a bit of a reprieve to be able to whine and cause a moment of distraction.

"Dean, stop being mean to Harry." Sam said obediently with a smile on his face as Harry stuck his tongue out at Dean.

Dean chuckled but refused to lower the arm that held the treacle tart prisoner. Harry eyed the bag with a predatory look and before the hunter knew what hit him, Harry lashed out, kicking the man in the back of the knee. Letting go of Sam, he pounced on the man in an attempt to get the dessert and before long, it turned out to be an all out wrestling match with the two tumbling around on the floor. The dessert was forgotten near Sam's foot.

Books and papers scattered from their rough play and it only came to a stop when Harry came out victorious.

"Doesn't this feel familiar?" Harry asked teasingly when he pinned Dean's arm behind his back.

"I was only going easy on you." Dean said, trying to play it off. They could hear Sam and Bobby chuckle at his words, clearly not believing the man.

"If you idjits are done fooling around, I think I found our demon." Bobby said, placing the book he was reading on the table. Getting off of Dean, the two made their way over and peered at the book that held the answer.

"Lamia?" Sam said, reading the title of the section. "A child-devouring daemon."

"Children? This thing's got a taste for men." Dean pointed out and Sam continued reading aloud.

"There's also mentioning that it's a fearsome underworld daemon who like to lure young men in the guise of beautiful women to their beds where they would then devour their flesh and blood."

"Well, that's a nice first date." Bobby said drily.

"How are we going to be able to find it?" Harry asked.

"The one place that houses hundreds of desperate men looking to get lucky from potential cannibalistic women." Dean answered and Harry knew he wasn't going to like it.

…

Harry rolled his eyes in annoyance when Dean let out a growl as he shoved away another body that insisted on grinding against the small wizard.

"Dean, we're supposed to split up to look for Lamia." Harry said in exasperation. The man's overprotective presence was tolerable at first but now it was getting ridiculous. The older Winchester hadn't even wanted him to come, opting for him to stay with Bobby and set things up when they caught Lamia but he had countered the argument with the fact that he could actually _sense_ the demon rather than the Winchesters play the guessing game.

Ever since the deal was made, Dean had treated him as if he was _dying_ and was in desperate need of being watched closely. Well, to be accurate, he _was_ dying but it didn't mean he was suddenly weak and in need of protection twenty-four seven.

Grabbing Dean's hand, he weaved them through the mass of dancing bodies and towards the bar. He seated himself on an open stool while Dean hovered over him, warning off potential threats and predators or even admirers.

"Being a bit overbearing, don't you think?" Harry asked sarcastically, eyeing the crowd for anyone who stood out a bit from everyone else. His magic was spread thinly through the building, searching for any heavy source of wild magic. If Lamia chose this night to decide to go to the club, hopefully his magic would be able to detect it as soon as it stepped into the place.

"Nah, I don't think so." Dean answered, a cocky grin on his face. Harry resisted the urge to kick him and instead directed his attention in seeking out Sam. It was much to his amusement when he found the youngest Winchester trying to fend off a very persistent woman in a leopard bra and spandex.

Harry felt his magic hiss when he spotted a woman making her way towards Sam and he motioned her to Dean.

"That's her." He said, discreetly pointing her out.

"Are you sure?" Dean asked, watching as the woman sent the leopard lady slinking away and began effectively flirting with the young hunter. She was beautiful as she was ethereal and she caught the attention of many with her very presence.

Seeing Dean gaze at her with an appreciative glance, Harry didn't fight the urge to kick the man this time.

"Ouch!" He cried out, rubbing the spot where Harry's toe had caught him. "What was that for?"

"You should signal to Sam that she's Lamia." He said while motioning with his hand. He hopped off the stool and pulled out his phone, intent on giving Bobby a head's up.

"Wait, are you jealous?" Dean asked with obvious delight on his face. Harry scowled at him. "There's nothing to be jealous of from that chick. Now, that leopard chick," he paused to give a gusty sigh. "Now that's someone to look out for."

It wasn't much of a surprise when Harry kicked the older Winchester again before stalking off.

"Go warn Sam." He said shortly over his shoulder, calling Bobby to tell him to get ready for their target.

It was all suppose to be really simple. They find Lamia, lure her to the room with the devil's trap, and then exorcise her but simple was never the Winchesters or Harry's forte.

It was all going according to plan until Sam led her to just outside the room. With the most charming look along with a cute nervous school boy look on his face, he invited her into the room but everything quickly went downhill from there.

Before anyone could react, she had pinned Sam by the neck against the door and leaned in close to lick his cheek.

"Sam Winchester," it said; its eyes reflecting the hunger it felt within. "The prodigy. The boy-king. You didn't really think I wouldn't be able to recognize you, did you? The celebrity that you are. I'll enjoy devouring you."

"Like hell you will." Sam managed to gasp out. His hands were trying to pry the demon's fingers away from his throat but it proved to be much stronger than him.

"Stay back." Dean spoke softly to Harry before he stepped out of the shadow. "Let him go." He called out, aiming his gun at Lamia. Harry felt a small surge of annoyance bubbling within him that Dean thought that he could just order him around.

"Or what?" It hissed. "I can snap pretty little Sammy's neck here before you even pull the trigger." It threatened and Dean hesitated, not willing to risk his brother's life.

"Shoot her." Sam said but Dean wouldn't listen. Harry fingered his wand, uncertain if he would be able to throw a spell at her before she could react but he didn't have to make the decision when the room's door suddenly burst open and Bobby threw holy water at her.

She screamed in agony when the water hit her square in the face and she released her hold, backing away from Sam. Drawing the Colt out, Sam shot her in the center of her forehead when she tried to lunge at him again and with a sizzle of electricity, her lifeless form fell face first onto the ground. From his position, Harry could see the blood slowly starting to pool around her head.

"I guess that's always another way to do it." Dean said, breaking out of his surprise silence that his brother had just killed the demon with no signs of remorse. Harry tried to push away the disturbing sight of the body before them.

"When in distress, use Plan B." Harry replied and Bobby shook his head at them.

"You idjits."

…

It was a day after that Harry summoned the courage to write the dreaded letter to inform Severus of his determined fate. It wasn't too detailed but it was enough for the man to know that Harry did not have long to live.

Tribbles laid on top of his head, alternating between squeaking and purring in an attempt to soothe Harry's worries and troubles. It was interesting that he was more scared of Severus's and potentially his friends' reactions to the news than his potential death. That said something about his character.

There had been no owls so far and left with the one choice that he was getting familiar with, he created a portkey keyed to Severus's magic. With a sense of trepidation, he sent the letter off and let out a breath of air. All that was left was to wait for an explosive reply and that was something that Harry was sure to happen.

Exiting the bathroom, because Dean had thought it was too dangerous for him to wander outside, he found Dean watching TV on the bed while Sam was no where in sight.

"Where's Sam?" He asked, retrieving Tribbles from his hair. If it weren't for its green eyes, it practically was camouflaged in his unruly hair.

"He said he needed some fresh air." Dean answered nonchalantly but there was a hint of a worried frown on his face.

"I'm gonna go talk to him." He announced and glared at the hunter when he was about to open his mouth to object. One would think the older Winchester thought he was going to keel over any minute or something similar to that fate. Placing Tribbles on top of Dean's head, he brushed a small kiss against the hunter's lips before heading out of the door.

Once outside, he spotted Sam a little ways off with his head bowed against his clenched fists. He approached him slowly.

"Sam?" He called out to draw his attention. When Sam looked up, Harry noted with concern that Sam's eyes were getting bloodshot from the lack of sleep.

"Harry," he said in answer and made some room for Harry to sit next to him. Harry bit his lip, uncertain on how to start.

"You're wearing yourself out. You need some sleep." He began.

"I can't sleep," Sam said, his fists clenched even tighter if it were possible. "Harry, you're going to die in five in a half months if we don't figure a way to free you from this deal and-"

"And we still got five in a half months left." He interrupted, his emerald green eyes meeting distressed hazel-brown. "I saved you, Sam and I willingly sold my soul for it. If I had to do it again, my actions would be the same."

"And why would you do that?" The younger Winchester demanded, guilt radiating from his eyes. "All my life, Dean has been the one to save me and now even you've saved me."

"It's because we care about you and because I consider you family as well." Harry answered easily before Sam could go on a tirade. "And face it, if the situation was reverse, the situation would've played out the exactly same way. I'm not gonna stand to the side when I could save you guys. You shouldn't have to blame yourself for this."

"Of course, it's my fault." Sam said passionately. "If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have to die."

"It's _not_ your fault." The small wizard argued adamantly. "You didn't force me to do it. I did it from my own free will. You tearing yourself apart isn't going to help matters." Sam stayed silent. "The best thing we can do now is move on and see where life takes us."

"You make it sound like you're giving up."

"I'm not giving up." Not exactly. "I just accepted it. If we find a way out of this deal, that's great but if not, then, that's all right too."

"It shouldn't be all right." Sam argued, but Harry offered him a small smile, his face void of any concerns or worries that he held himself.

"Promise me, Sam." He said. "Promise me that you'll stop blaming yourself for something that you had no control over and to never let your bond with your brother fade." The youngest Winchester stayed silent and Harry frowned. "Promise to the dying man."

"That's not funny." Sam said and visibly flinched backwards when Harry's face suddenly loomed close to his own.

"Look into my eyes, Sam." He said, his hands cupping the other's face until they were staring into each other's eyes. "I don't blame you." His eyes glittered with his sincerity and he could see Sam's eyes slowly watering from his inner turmoil. "Why bear the burden of feeling guilty when I don't blame you. It's a waste of time, especially when it's not your fault."

"I don't understand how you can say that." Was the response but the guilt did lessen a bit. It was better than nothing.

"Because it's true and if I have to, I'll whack you in the head twice every hour to drill it into that thick head of yours." Harry replied.

"Violent much?"

"Now, promise me. Promise that you'll take care of yourself and your brother." _If I die_, was the unspoken words but they were all too clear in the small wizard's meaning.

"What about the other promise?" Sam asked, his face still miserable.

"Those, too." Harry answered.

"I promise." He said quietly. "But only if you promise that you aren't giving up. We'll keep searching for a way to free you."

"I promise. Now," Harry said, a wide smile spreading across his face. He clambered onto the taller Winchester's back and clung on. "To our room!"

Hooking his arms under Harry's knees, a small chuckle erupted from Sam and he stood up and obediently walked back to the room where Dean was trying to eavesdrop from. It was just too bad for the older Winchester that Harry had threw up a privacy charm on the way out.

…

**A/N**: Another chapter done with. =]

Since a couple of people have asked about the Deathly Hallows, I guess I'll just place the answer here. All of the Hallows are placed exactly where Harry had left them in the book so Harry wouldn't be able to use the resurrection stone to bring Sam back.

The Master of Death thing, I think I've told some people that I didn't plan much of putting it in the story but I'm not too sure anymore. Although I've got future chapters planned out, I'm always constantly changing it because of new ideas popping into my head so you never know. =] It might play a big part in the story and it might not. ^-^ \V/ Anyway, I hope you'll stick around to wait and see.

Thanks a bunch for all the reviews and comments that I've received. They're much appreciated and hoped you enjoyed the read!


	13. 12

Chapter Twelve

"All right, so I think I know what we're..." The words Sam were about to say trailed off when he spotted a fuming Harry sitting with his arms crossed in front of his chest and no Dean in sight. He glanced over towards the bathroom and frowned in confusion when he saw that it was empty. "Harry, where's Dean?"

There was no way that his brother had left the smaller man alone, not with the way his overprotective mode had come into play. It was amazing at how long Harry had been able to cope with Dean when his brother was in such a mood so Sam wasn't entirely surprised when he had finally snapped.

In response to Sam's question, Harry huffed in annoyance and concerned, he was about to take a step towards Harry when he felt something land on his shoe and croaked. Figuring it was only Tribbles, he looked down in preparation to pick up the small furry creature he had grown fond to but he was startled to find a miserable looking frog looking up at him with familiar hazel-green eyes.

His eyes widened from surprise. It couldn't be.

"D-Dean?" He stuttered, stunned when the little green frog gave him what sounded like an affirmative croak. He quickly bent down to scoop up the amphibian into his hands and stared incredulously at it as it gave him a pitiful look. He didn't even know frogs were able to pull off such an expression until now. "You turned my brother into a frog?" He asked Harry who shrugged, pouting.

"He was being unreasonable." Harry said almost childishly, defending himself and further added, "And it wasn't like I _meant_ to turn into one but he just kept going on and on about going outside wasn't safe and I was getting irritated so, I guess my magic lashed out." He finished rather weakly.

"How long has he been like this?"

Harry glanced over that frog Dean before looking away. Sam could see that Harry's frustration was slowly fading but it was clear that it was still very much present. Leave it to Dean to royally piss off the magically inclined, newest addition to their family but he, from personal experiences, knew that Dean could be overbearing when he gets into his overprotective mood.

He could only imagine what their lives and their brotherly relationship would have been like if all of Dean's domineering ways was focused solely on him instead of Harry and himself.

"About thirty minutes now."

The frog… Dean croaked in misery again and seemed to slump in Sam's hand. He didn't know whether to be horrified or amused of the predicament that his brother had found himself in but knowing that Harry would never hurt Dean, he allowed a chuckle to escape. That earned him a betrayed look from his brother.

"Aww, come on, Dean. It can't be too bad, could it?" Sam asked. It still took some time to get used to Harry's bouts of magic but it was _naturally_ Harry's. Not like the demon blood that runs through his veins. He shook the thought away. "Why don't you change him back?"

"I tried." Harry said. "But it doesn't work. We just have to wait until the spell ends."

"When's that?" Sam asked in alarm, a tiny bubble of hysteria beginning to form while his brother gave out a sound like a whine in despair.

"It should be some time today." Harry answered after some thought, not really concerned. Yeah, it was obvious that the young wizard was still very much frustrated with his brother. Sam and frog-Dean shared a look with each other, the latter looking more frantic than the first.

"_Do something._" Dean's plea was clearly heard in Sam's head and he offered his brother an apologetic look.

"Sorry, man." He said, carefully placing the older Winchester turned frog gently on the bed where Harry was occupying and watched in fascination when Dean started to crawl, since he couldn't hop on the squishy bed, towards the still figure of Harry.

Reached out one of his frog legs when he was close enough to Harry, Dean touched Harry's hand and croaked. Harry glanced down at the frog Dean and his emerald green eyes softened upon noticing the depressed look in the other's eyes. He carefully slid his hand under Dean's body and placed him on his lap, his fingers beginning to stroke the frog on the top of his head to his back and Sam had to muffle his laughter when frog-Dean closed his eyes unwillingly from pleasure.

Harry allowed a small smile to spread across his face as he said, "You should've seen him when he first found out he was a frog. He was jumping all over the place in a panic. Nearly smashed into the table."

Dean opened his frog eyes to glare at Harry but it quickly closed again in delight when Harry stroked him in the right spot. Finding this all too surreal, Sam dropped himself into a chair and found that he couldn't stop staring at the sight in front of him.

"Man, this is the weirdest thing I've ever seen." He admitted and Harry beamed at him, his mood apparently much better than it previously was.

"With the job you do, I'll take it as a compliment." He declared and a small croak echoed him. "So what were you about to say when you were entering the room?"

"Oh!" He quickly pulled out the small notebook that he had taken notes in earlier. "So apparently there's this local legend that claims that at night, there's a bridge here that people have reported having heard a baby's cry. All the legend starts with a woman who throws her baby off the bridge before hanging herself."

Frog Dean seemed to want to say something but all that came out was a croak and Sam continued on reporting his findings.

"It turns out that both of the victims had visited the bridge on a dare prior to their deaths and had told their families that they've seen a woman that night."

"So she attaches herself to them and then kills them?" Harry asked.

"That's about it." Sam replied. "According to what I could find, the town's people have buried her in the farthest part in the cemetery in an unmarked grave."

"How are we going to find it?"

"That's… going to be the hard part. The town's people aren't exactly willing to talk about it."

A small silence ensued.

"That's just bloody fantastic." And Sam couldn't agree more.

…

**An hour later**

Harry stared into the miserable hazel-green eyes of Dean the frog and contemplated on what to do. The frustration had vanished and all that was left in was the guilt. Dean was truly dejected by his frog state and he could feel the clawing sensation of remorse in his stomach. He should really think before he did anything.

He had tried to change Dean back but for some reason, his magic was simply refusing to bend to his will and turn the older Winchester back to his human form. Tribbles laid next to frog-Dean as it stared curiously at the frog-man.

"I'm sorry." Harry said softly, stroking Dean. Dean looked up at him in misery and offered a small croak, forgiving Harry. He lifted a frog feet to touch him and Harry couldn't help but to lift him up until they were face to face. "I'm sorry." He repeated and placed a small kiss on top of Dean's head before placing him back down on the bed.

The effect was slow reacting. In fact, it was a few minutes after Harry had kissed frog-Dean that there appeared to be a glow around the amphibian. Instead of an instantaneous reaction like when Dead had first transformed, it first started with his hind legs slowly turning back to human legs, following his arms and then the rest of his body following.

Sam, who was seated at the table, stared in amazement at the display of magic slowly morphing the older Winchester back to his original self. It seemed like it was a slow progression but in actuality, only a minute or two had passed.

Once again, the room was filled with silence.

Finally Dean moved, patting himself down quickly to see that all his parts were back to normal and he grinned.

"Well, that's a relief. I was starting to crave flies." He joked, trying to cover up just how much the transformation had disturbed him. It wasn't a natural transition from man to frog and frog to man after all.

Two incredulous pair of eyes just looked at him before Harry uttered his disbelief.

"Dean's the frog prince?"

…

It was later that night and after Dean was fed and had his beloved pie, they headed off towards the cemetery where the malevolent spirit's bones lay. They had all the necessary equipment for digging up a grave and now it was just a matter of finding the unmarked grave.

Harry walked with the Winchesters on either side of him, pouting because of how much they towered over him in size. Damn their genes.

Dean's overprotectiveness had diminished somewhat and he didn't seem angry at him but Harry still felt guilty for his actions. As if sensing his thoughts, the older hunter brushed his hand against his own and smirked down at him.

"Getting the heebie jeebies?" He asked and Harry couldn't help stick his tongue out at him.

"Unlikely." He responded and smiled when Dean drew him close. They walked further in silence, keeping an ear and an eye out for any unwanted visitors that could be lurking around in the dark that could potentially ambush them.

They came to a stop when Sam paused.

"I think this is it." Sam said, pointing his light at a grassy patch. Harry and Dean stared at the spot dubiously.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, bending down to take a closer look at the ground. Dean tossed down his bag of equipment and rolled up his sleeves.

"Well, there's one way to find out." And with that, the man dug his chosen shovel deep and tossed the first pile of dirt and grass to the side.

"Great." Harry said, peering anxiously around their surroundings. The quicker they finished up the job, the better.

As the Winchester brothers worked on digging up the homicidal ghost woman's bones, Harry was in charge of being the lookout. Standing guard, he could feel the hair on the back of his neck stand on end when he felt someone or something watching them with ill intent. Tension on the rise, he tightened his grip on his wand while his eyes darted left and right for any signs of the being.

Suddenly his eyes snapped to the side and he quickly dove as a jet of red magic flew through the air, only disappearing when it hit the fence.

"Harry?"

"Just keep digging." He called back in response to Dean, searching for what only could be another wizard. A Deatheater. "I'll be fine."

He felt a cold sensation behind him then and he whirled around to find the murderous ghost. She was dressed in a modest white dress but while the dress was clean and neat, the woman's hair was bedraggled and her face was gaunt with the skin around her eyes blackened, sunken in. She didn't look a single thing like the ghosts that dwelled in Hogwarts, that was for sure.

Before he could defend himself, she had sent him flying, separating him from the Winchesters. His back smashed into the ground and he rolled a bit, grunting from the pain. He could see the spirit turning her attention to the hunters and with one single hand movement, she had tossed the two away from the grave they were digging up.

Why was it that every job that they considered easy turned out to be the hardest?

Getting onto his feet, he was going to run over to help them when the unknown Deatheater shot another curse at him. Dodging, he flung his own spell in the direction of the dark wizard, ducking behind a gravestone. It was just his luck to once again be dueling in a graveyard.

"It's a pleasure to see you again, Potter." The Deatheater spoke up; his voice revealing that it was Rodolphus Lestrange.

"I wish I could say the same." Harry said, his eyes darting from the Winchesters who were struggling against the spirit and to where Lestrange could be hiding. He moved slowly to another gravestone nearby, muffling his footsteps as he went. "Come to try to kill me?"

"Not quite," was the answer. "Your death is coming and I wouldn't dare interfere with the fate that awaits you."

Trusting that Dean and Sam could handle the original job, he focused all of his attention on finding Lestrange. It was a wonder on how he could possibly use magic without the wand that Harry had snapped and burned.

"I heard that you've killed Mulciber." Lestrange continued on, his voice sounding impossibly far and close at the same time. "Sliced his head off, didn't you?" Harry gritted his teeth.

"What about it?"

"Nothing much." The other said. "But it's amusing how the Golden Boy slaughters someone without an ounce of guilt. With that attitude, you'll fit right in when you get to Hell."

"What do you know about that?" Harry asked, the tension in him rising.

"What every demon knows." Was the answer. "Little Potter sold his soul to save the Winchesters. How touching."

A jet of magic flew towards Harry again and he dove to the side.

"_Stupefy!_" He shouted, not expecting the spell to hit but rather to draw Lestrange out. Hearing a small rustle to his left, he rushed out from behind the gravestone and threw a cutting charm at the wizard who reflected it away with a wave of his hand.

"Do you think these magic tricks will be able to defeat me?" He taunted and with another wave of his hand, he had sent Harry flying and pinned by an invisible force to a tree. It was like what the Yellow-Eyed Demon had done.

His magic pulsed out to reject the powerful but tainted magic holding him and to his relief, he felt it give way a little. Lestrange may somehow have attained the demon's magic, but he wasn't on the same level as them.

"How are you doing this?" Harry questioned, willing his magic to slowly beat back the taint. He only hoped that Lestrange wouldn't notice. Standing before Harry, he could see the dark wizard's eyes gleaming in the moonlight, maliciousness dwelling within its depth.

"I've told you before, haven't I?" He said, smirking. "The demons hold much more promise and this is just one of the gifts that they've bestowed upon the ones that have come and joined their ranks."

"So you've sold your soul to them?"

"Not quite." The dark wizard replied. "Not like you have, little Potter. When news first reached me about your deal, I can't tell you how much it brought me joy." He brought his face close to Harry's. "How does it feel that soon you're going to be a demon's bitch?"

He spat in the dark wizard's face and earned a hard slap as a result.

"Why don't you tell me what to expect?" Harry said with a feral grin, blood dripping down from the corner of his mouth. "Being that you already are a demon's bitch." His face was grabbed in a painfully tight grip but he refused to flinch, staring into the eyes of his enemy.

"Your cheek won't last long down there. Mark my words." Lestrange hissed. "Once you're down there, you'll eventually start to forget who you were and what you once stood for. Soon, you'll be begging to bathe in the blood of those you've ever considered your loved ones."

"Never." Harry spat out, trying to dislodge the fingers clawing into face. He tried not to show how terrified he was of the potential of Lestrange's words coming true. The power that the dark wizard had imposed on him was weakening and any second now he would be able to cast it off of him.

"You say that now but deep inside, you know what I say is the truth. Why lie when the truth hurts you so much more?"

Vibrating with anger, the invisible bonds vanished with one final push from his magic and he lashed out at the man. Throwing a fist, it connected to the man's eye and he kicked him back away from him.

"You're lying." Harry denied.

"Am I?" He asked, laughing almost manically. "Well, I suppose you'll find out soon but know this, they're going to have fun with you, Potter. And that, is something you can count on."

And with a loud crack, the man disapparated, leaving Harry to stare at the empty spot that he just seconds ago occupied.

…

**Early in the morning, after the hunt**

"Come on. Are you gonna tell me what that freaky witch guy wanted with you?" Dean asked while Harry carefully bandaged his head and Sam was asleep on his designated bed. It seemed that when the spirit had thrown the older Winchester, his head managed to soften the blow for the rest of his body when he crashed into the ground.

"Wizard." Harry corrected absentmindedly, putting all his attention towards wrapping the man's head up. "And he didn't say much."

"And Sam's not a walking encyclopedia of weirdness." Dean said sarcastically.

"It was nothing important."

"If it was nothing important, then you wouldn't mind telling me."

Harry sighed, finishing up the last touches of the bandage and sat back. His hands clutched at one another while he stared down at the motel's blanket.

"Dean, do you think we're able to go anywhere?"

"Go? Where do you want to go?"

"I meant with this relationship." Harry explained further, not looking up at the hunter. The thought had been plaguing him recently and with all that's been occupying his mind, it had finally slipped out at the most unexpected time.

"What do you mean?" Dean asked, his voice oddly flat.

"I'm going to die. Face it, we both know this isn't going to be able to go far so why drag it out?" He finally lifted his head to look into Dean's eyes. "With the way this is going, I'm going to…" Fall in love with you. Was what he was going to say but he trailed off, unwilling to finish the sentence. "This is only going to end in heartbreak."

"No, it won't." Dean said gruffly. His eyes sparkled with his determination and he pulled Harry into his arms, hugging him close. "I won't let it and I'm definitely not letting this go. We're going to find a way for you to get out of this deal."

"And what if we can't?" Harry said, his voice muffled from Dean's shirt.

"We will." The older man said stubbornly.

"But what if we don't?" He asked softly again, bring his arms to wrap around the other's torso

"We will." Harry couldn't help smiling at the man's persistence. "If you want to end this, you better think of something better than the excuse that you're going to die because I refuse to let you go."

Unable to say anything more, he burrowed his face into the hunter's chest. He didn't want to admit it, but at that moment, Harry believed that he was already in love with Dean Winchester.

…

**Later that night…**

A sound of a duffel bag being zipped up drew Harry away from the land of dreams and he turned his head from Dean's embrace to see Sam wide awake and prepared to go somewhere.

"Sam?" He called out softly, startling the younger hunter. He carefully withdrew himself out from underneath Dean's arm and sat up.

"Harry, go back to sleep." Sam said quietly.

"Where are you going?" There was no way that he was going back to sleep while it looked like Sam was planning on going off somewhere on his own.

"Just for a little drive."

Harry narrowed his eyes at the lie.

"I'm coming with you." It looked like Sam was about to argue but he stilled when Dean shifted a bit in his sleep, unconsciously searching for Harry's small form. With a small nod from Sam, Harry carefully slipped out of bed and planted a small kiss on the slumbering man's lips before changing into a pair of jeans and a sweater. "Let's go then."

Exiting the motel room, they made their way towards the Impala and within seconds, they were off on the road with Sam the only one of the two knowing where they were headed.

"Where are we headed?" Harry asked, peering out into the darkness. Sam seemed to hesitate for a bit before answering.

"Crossroad demon."

"Why?"

"Bobby said that if we can kill the demon who holds your contract, it'll be absolved."

"And you were going to go do it alone?" Harry asked, a little angry.

"I didn't want to give you false hope." Sam answered, looking a bit contrite and the anger Harry felt faded. He couldn't blame him.

"Why now in the middle of the night?"

"I heard you two talking earlier." He could practically hear the sorrow and guilt layered in the younger Winchester's tone.

"Don't even think about feeling guilty." Harry said strictly. "I'd hit the thought out of your head if you weren't driving." Sam let out a small chuckle.

"Sorry."

"You better be."

It was half an hour later when Sam pulled to a stop and got out of the car with the duffel bag and Harry stood to the side as Sam begun to process of summoning the demon. Burying the last item into the dirt, he stood back and they waited for the demon's appearance. It was right before they were going to believe that the demon wasn't going to show when a female's voice spoke up.

"Well, well. If it isn't little Sammy Winchester." It said, walking into the light that the Impala's headlights provided. "I already had gotten the chance to meet your brother and I was just waiting for the moment until I would meet you." It glanced over at Harry before smirking and turning back towards Sam. "What can I do for you?"

Sam maneuvered his body until he blocked Harry from its view and Harry resisted on sighing in exasperation. What was it with the Winchesters that felt the urge to protect him and try to shelter him from everything?

"Are you the one who holds his contract?" Sam asked.

"No," the demon answered easily. "All contracts go to the head boss and I can tell you he's not as cuddly as me."

"Who is it?"

The demon scoffed at Sam.

"I can't tell you. I'm sorry, Sam, but there's no way out of this one. Not this time." It added, its eyes focusing on Harry who had moved out from behind the taller Winchester.

"Every deal can be broken." Sam argued, refusing to give up.

"Not this one."

"You may not talk, but I'm sure there are others that are willing." The demon gave him a humorless smile.

"They won't and you can count on it that you won't be able to get an answer out of them either." It said with utter confidence.

With one fluid motion, Sam had the Colt out and aimed at the demon. Harry watched it all in silence.

"Then you're pretty much useless to us."

"You can kill me if it'll make you feel better but it isn't going to end Harry's contract."

"No, but at least no more people will be dealing with you." He cocked the gun and took aim.

On the ride back to the motel, Harry couldn't help glancing at Sam now and then in concern. Ever since Sam had pulled the trigger, the hunter had descended into silence and kept his eyes focused on the road.

After a few minutes have past, Harry unbuckled his seat belt and scooted over towards Sam to place a comforting hand on the other's arm, startling the other to look down at him. He smiled softly at the hunter.

"It's okay, Sam." Harry said and it seemed to break the coldness that had seeped into the younger Winchester's eyes.

"We're going to get you out of this."

That was the quote of the day, it seemed.

"I don't want this to break you guys in the process." Harry murmured.

"It won't." Sam said before grinning down at Harry. "Don't think you can try to use that excuse to get rid of us." Harry allowed a small laugh to erupt from his lips.

"No, I didn't think so." Harry said, grinning and sat back in his seat. The rest of the ride was driven out in silence but the air wasn't as heavy as it was previously.

Entering the motel room quietly, the two quickly changed their clothes.

"Good night, Harry." Sam said softly, crawling into his bed.

"Good night, Sam." He replied and after contemplating, Harry crawled in next to Dean who immediately latched onto him in his sleep. He felt an unbidden smile appear on his face as he snuggled in close, his heart filling with love.

"Good night, Dean."

…

**A/N**: So, a little bit of Frog Dean. Hope that amused some of you because it sure amused me. =] But overall, not entirely too thrilled on how the chapter turned out, so if you feel up to it, tell me what you think.

As always, thanks a bunch for the reviews and comments. =] Sorry for not responding to the emails individually but it's really great to hear that you're enjoying the story so far and hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	14. 13

Chapter Thirteen

**Four Months Left**

Tribbles' opened its sleepy emerald green eyes when muffled yelling woke it from its dream of its wizard feeding it french fries and it grumbled moodily. Peering over the edge of the bed, the little pygmy puff deduced that the noise was coming from its wizard's backpack and with a discontent squeak, it rolled to the head of the bed where its wizard was sleeping with his mate believing that its wizard will know how to make it stop.

Alternating between squeaking and flicking its tongue against its wizard's cheek, it gave out a hum of delight when its wizard's eyes began to flutter open.

"Tribbles?" Harry asked, his voice hoarse from sleep. Tribbles squeaked again before rolling down along the bed and then dropped itself directly onto the still yelling backpack. "Wha- Dean let go." He said, removing the arm that was wrapped around his waist.

"Hm? No," the man grumbled, tightening his grip the more Harry wiggled. "Don't wanna." Tribbles gave another discontent squeak and began bouncing on the bag in hopes of stopping the noise. The yelling only intensified and with a start, Harry realized what or rather _who_ it was.

"Oh hell." He said and twisted out of Dean's hold. He scrambled out of bed despite the hunter's protest and moved Tribbles back to the bed before he practically ripped open his backpack. Immediately, the muffled yelling became audible and both Sam and Dean jumped in alarm at the increase in volume when he pulled out the magical object.

"-ter! If you don't answer me right now, I'm going to cut you open and use your liver as a potion ingredient!"

"Hello," Harry greeted the man pleasantly, a grin on his face. He held out the mirror that he had completely forgotten he had and where his reflection should be, Severus's face was there instead. The potions master was sporting red cheeks, probably from all his yelling, and his obsidian eyes glittered with anger and another unknown emotion Harry couldn't place.

"Harry?" Sam called out questioningly from his bed, sitting up from all the commotion. "Is that mirror-"

"Hello? I always knew that you were a dunderhead, Potter, but after you send me that letter and after _weeks_ of searching for a way to contact you, the best you can come up with is hello?" Okay, so it was obvious that Severus was one unhappy wizard. By this time, Dean had also wide awake and staring incredulously at Harry and the mirror in his hand.

"Er-"

"Stupid, reckless Gryffindors." Severus continued onwards, not letting Harry have a say in the matter. "Typical that you, Potter, go off gallivanting off and pull an idiotic stunt like this!"

"Hey!" Dean angrily called out, unable to take the insults that were being thrown at Harry but the small wizard just waved him off. He knew that this was going to happen. Well, he didn't know that Severus was going to get his hands on Charlie's mirror but he knew that Severus wasn't going to take the news quietly.

"Maybe I should take this into another room." He said weakly but his idea was almost immediately rejected by surprisingly Severus. Though, the Winchesters came a close second to denying his suggestion.

"You are not going anywhere." Severus hissed and Harry could hear someone trying to calm the man down in the background. _Charlie_. He realized, who else would it be. "You're going to stay right where you are with the buffoons that you've been running around with that got you into this mess."

"That's a bit harsh." Dean muttered. Both of the Winchesters had slowly been creeping closer to Harry and they can now see just who was yelling. It was a bit unnerving for them to see a man with a hooked nose peering out from the pane of glass.

"They didn't get me in any mess." Harry protested and Severus scoffed.

"No, knowing you, you probably threw yourself headfirst into the situation without an ounce of consideration of what the outcome will be." Heh, never let it be said that Severus didn't know Harry's character. Unable to deny the claim, he could only settle on looking like a contrite student. He felt like he was a Hogwarts student all over again and Severus the much hated professor that was going to give him detentions until he practically breathed the word.

"Hey! That's enough." Dean broke in, snatching the mirror away from Harry.

"Dean!" Harry exclaimed in shock, trying to get it back. He was afraid of what the confrontation between the two of them would bring.

At least, they aren't in the same room. He thought. He wasn't exactly sure how that would play out but he knew that spells and bullets might've played a huge part in their meeting.

"You," he heard Severus hissed out like an angry snake when he was now face to face with Dean. "What have you dragged Potter into?"

"He didn't drag me into anything." Harry spoke up. He could feel a headache coming on.

"Then why don't you tell me exactly how you came into this situation?" Severus's voice turned silky and a feeling of dread began to grow in the pit of his stomach. An angry shouting Severus was bad enough but when the man's voice changed to such a tone, it was something to look out for.

"You don't need to know how it happened." He said, extracting the mirror from the older Winchester. The potions master's eyes were no longer glittering in anger. In fact, it now refrained from revealing any emotion that the man might be feeling.

Sam was quietly sitting off to the side, but a cloud of guilt seemed to be growing over his head the longer Severus continued on with his rant. His progress with Sam was unraveling by the seams and he resisted the urge to yell at the injustice of it. It _wasn't_ Sam's fault and it was too bad that he couldn't just stamp that into the youngest Winchester's brain permanently.

Dean, on the other hand, appeared to be angry on the exterior but Harry could see the faint traces of guilt emanating from the man that he was desperately trying to hide. Biting his lip, he gave Severus a meaningful look which cut the man off from another tirade before he turned his attention back to the Winchesters.

"Why don't you guys go get some breakfast?" He suggested and when they looked like they were going to protest, he gave them doe-eyes. "Please? I'm hungry."

With a small grumble, Dean got off the bed to go clean up and giving Sam a small smile, the young hunter also got up to proceed in getting presentable. It was a mere few minutes before the motel room was empty of all but Harry and the mirror; Tribbles have been given to Sam by Harry to take along.

"You're always a bundle of joy," Harry said drily when he was sure that the Winchester brothers were gone. "You just undid all the progress I managed to do to make them _not_ feel guilty." Severus sneered.

"Guilty? It's just like you to be more concerned for their sense of _guilt_ instead of the fact that you are going to _die._"

"Because it's not their fault." Harry protested.

"Or is it much easier to focus on their guilt than your death?" The other wizard continued on as Harry had never spoken.

"No!" Harry denied immediately, but a small part of him acknowledged that there might be some truth in that question. By the look on Severus's face, the man knew that as well.

"You foolish, arrogant boy," the man said without much heat in it. A muffled noise in the background could be heard and soon Charlie's face appeared in the mirror.

"Harry," his blue eyes shone with anguish and Harry felt a knot of guilt begin to well up. "Is it true?"

"Yes." He answered softly.

"Were you even going to tell me?" Harry didn't answer but they both knew the answer would've been no.

Harry had only written to Severus to inform him that he had run into trouble that resulted in him only living six more months out of sense of duty. After all the man had sacrificed for his mother and essentially for him, he owed the man for being truthful to that extent of the matter.

"Will you tell us how?" Seeing Charlie's angst ridden eyes and Severus's unwavering stare, the story began to spill from his lips save the dream meetings with Voldemort.

"Why?" Charlie managed to voice when Harry told them how his fate had come to be.

"Because he's a self-sacrificing Gryffindor that loves to play hero." Severus answered for him, his eyes taken on an odd glean.

"I couldn't just let their family be broken apart." He protested.

"So you sell your soul instead." It wasn't a question but more of a statement. "Of all the imbecilic, idiotic things to do."

Severus was no longer in sight and a few seconds later, a loud slam could be heard. The man had left the room which left only Harry and Charlie. An uneasy silence transcended upon them and for the life of him, Harry didn't know what to say.

"You know," Charlie finally spoke up. "It doesn't necessarily surprise me that you would do such a thing. You were always such a selfless person." He cracked a small humorless smile. "I've always worried that someday you'll go somewhere where we won't be able to follow but I never thought that it would be Hell."

"Sorry." Harry said but Charlie shook his head.

"No, you're not. If you could do it all over again, you'd do the same thing." The Weasley paused a bit before continuing with a depreciative smile. "The things you're willing to do for the people you love. You're amazing as much as you're an idiot."

Harry's eyes widened in surprise at the comment.

"What?"

"You've fallen in love with one of them, haven't you?" Charlie asked. Harry opened his mouth but no words were able to come out. It was something that he had admitted to himself but he wasn't ready to hear or confirm it out loud. "You don't need to say anything. It is without a doubt true." The dragon tamer said, chuckling humorlessly. "I should've told you a long time ago instead of putting it off. I guess that's what I get for being such a coward."

"Wha-" Harry was confused. What was going on?

"I love you, Harry." Charlie said and the small wizard felt his heart give a small tug in sorrow.

"Charlie," he breathed, unsure what to say.

"Sorry, just had to say it." Was the reply. "Though I have to say, if it were me, I would've never have allowed you to be in a position where you had to sell your soul."

"I didn't _have_ to sell my soul." He protested.

"No, his inane Gryffindor tendency just had to kick in." Severus's voice floated through the mirror as he entered the room once again after having regained his composure. "Get out of here, Weasley. I want to talk to Potter alone."

Sharing one last look at Harry, Charlie nodded his acquiesce before handing the mirror back to Severus and leaving the room to give them some privacy.

"Are you going to yell at me some more?" Harry asked.

"Even if I do yell at you, I'm not sure how much your thick skull would take in." Severus answered. "Your listening skills were always atrocious and following instructions was always a ridiculously challenging thing for you to do."

"I can _to_ follow instructions." Severus snorted.

"When they suit you," the man said and Harry couldn't deny it. "Your tendency to run into trouble is astounding and your self-preservation is something that makes me shiver in disgust." Glittering obsidian eyes focused on him. "There's something you're not telling me."

"Do not lie to me, Potter." Severus threatened when Harry was going to deny the accusation. "I am not foolish nor am I one of those bumbling, incompetent fans you have floating around the Wizarding World that'll believe anything you say."

"No, I could never confuse you as such." Harry said, sighing. He knew that he wouldn't be able to hide it from the man. "The connection is back in place." The small draw of breath was heard from the other wizard. "When I die, he'll be there waiting for me. I know what you think I did was stupid, but I felt like it was the right thing to do. Sam and Dean… they've been trying to find a way to get me out of this deal, but I don't think it's possible, is it?"

"You're talking about a contract with _demons_," Severus said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "The structure and mechanics of such a thing is similar to that of the Unbreakable Vow. It is without a doubt that wizards from centuries ago had created that incantation with the demon contract in mind albeit without the soul selling."

"No, we just die and possibly get sent to Hell if we fail to uphold the vow." Harry said, sighing. "So there's no way to get out of it after all."

"Binding contracts within the Wizarding World are usually forged with our magic but with the ways of the demons, with the kiss you've foolishly shared with that demon, you've effectively bounded your magical core to that contract."

"So if we did manage to break it, I'd die anyway?"

"I said _similar_. Do pay attention," he chastised the smaller wizard. "Do use your ears or are they just accessories on your head?" Harry opened his mouth to object but was cut off. "Nevermind. The difference between the two is that there might be a way for you to get out of _this _one."

"To kill the one who holds the contract?" Harry asked and Severus gave him a sharp look.

"Yes," he said. "It's rumored that if you can kill the one who holds the contract, it'll be absolved but there's also the case where there's a possibility that it'll just be transferred to another owner. There hasn't been any one _alive _to confirm it."

"And the problem right now is that we don't even know who the contract holder is."

"That's why I've always said you're a fool," the older wizard said. "Always jumping into things without thinking. It's amazing that you've survived as long as you have."

"I find it an acquired skill." Harry answered just when the motel door opened.

"What's an acquired skill?" Dean asked as he stepped in, dropping breakfast on the table.

"Nothing," Harry said, standing up from the floor. "I'm going to go take a shower. Severus-"

"There's nothing I'd like better if I can talk to your… friends." By the end of the sentence, it seemed like the man held nothing but distain for the Winchester brothers. Harry didn't think it would be such a good idea.

"I don't think-"

"Sure thing," Dean cut in, grinning. "You go take a shower. It's not every day we get to talk to an actually talking mirror. Hey, Sam! Do you think we can get him to tell him which one of us is the prettiest of them all?"

"I think you mean fairest." Sam corrected and Dean waved him off.

"Charming friends you have." Severus said, glowering at Dean when he took the mirror from Harry. Ushered into the bathroom, Harry felt a bit of trepidation grow within him but shook his head. It was only going to be half an hour or less. How bad could it turn out?

…

Apparently, it could turn out really bad. As soon as he stepped out of the bathroom, an outraged Severus could be heard and Tribbles came practically flying towards him, cowering at his feet. He briefly considered relocking himself in the bathroom but instead bent down to pick up a trembling Tribbles and walked over cautiously to the source of the yelling.

"Potter! Are you asinine?" Severus yelled out when he caught sight of him. "What in the world convinced you that it was the brightest thing in the world to travel with _hunters_?"

Ah, that was also something that he didn't want the man to know. Look at the two Winchesters, Sam was frowning in thought while Dean looked like he was itching to pull his gun out to shoot the mirror. The older wizard had probably spent the whole time threatening and belittling them.

"Because I trust them."

"We've already established that you lack a sense of preservation skills." He retorted but it looked like the anger was slowly fading. "Talking to you is exhausting."

"It's probably because you've been yelling too much." He replied breezily. "If you aren't careful, you'll start getting grey hair."

"Impertinent brat. It'd be your fault if I get grey hair." He said with exasperation and he looked at the time. "I have a school of brats to attend to. I'll contact you again with this mirror if I find anything."

"I've been wondering, why _are_ you using Charlie's mirror?" Harry asked, giving into curiosity. Severus gave him a look as if to be saying, "are you an idiot?"

"Before you sent that letter, the wild magic there has been growing sporadically and it's built up a _barrier._" Seeing the younger wizard's confused look, Severus continued on. "Meaning the magic there is barring entrance to any magical being from entering."

"What about coming out?" Harry asked worriedly, sharing a look with the Winchester brothers.

"That is something I don't know." He turned his attention to Dean and his eyes hardened. "And you! If I ever see you in person, I will transfigure you into a bloody rat and feed you to the owls."

"I don't think they'd digest me well." Was the reply but Severus ignored him, turning back to look at Harry.

"Potter," For a brief second, obsidian eyes softened a bit and the weeks the man spent worrying for him could be seen before it was hidden once more. "Take care. I'll be in touch." And with that, the mirror turned into a blank pane and Harry found himself staring at his own reflection.

Mentally shaking his head to clear all of his troubled thoughts, he placed the mirror carefully down onto the table and gave the Winchesters a small grin.

"Well, that went a whole lot better than I expected."

His statement was met by disbelief and slight fear of what Harry could've considered worse.

…

End of the chapter!

**A/N**: Not much going on in this chapter but I hoped it turned out all right. There were a couple of people that were waiting for Severus to make an appearance and I hope I didn't disappoint you too much. . I feel like this chapter's a bit iffy but I'm still hoping that you've all enjoyed the chapter.

To luv-blonde-bunny: Well… umm… I'm most definitely going to take it to where the angels will be playing a part and that's all I'll tell you just to keep you in suspense. =P Haha.

Also, thanks for the comments and reviews! Super happy to hear you liked Dean as the frog prince! And thanks a bunch for reading. =]


	15. 14

Chapter Fourteen

**Countdown: Three and a Half Months **

Harry stared at the smug face of the demon that the Winchesters were interrogating and he couldn't help but wonder about the person that used to be before the demon possessed them. Did they have family waiting for them? Searching for them? Praying for them to return?

And the man would be returned to them, Harry thought sadly. But not in the way that would bring joy or become a cause for celebration. No, once they were through with the demon and send it back to a one-way trip to Hell, all that would be left would be a broken corpse. The demon had not been kind to its host; proof of that fact would be the fatal wounds that were present on the torso. It was a sure thing that the man wasn't going to survive when they were going to exorcise it from his body.

He was dragged from his thoughts when the demon gave a roar of pain when Dean splashed it with the flask of holy water he held in his hand. The water sizzled on contact and it thrashed in the chair that they had bound it to, trying to jerk away from the pain. A devil's trap laid beneath it, trapping it until they either got what they wanted or Sam had sent it back to where it belonged.

"Who holds the contracts?" Dean demanded, his voice firm and authoritative. The demon was far from intimidated and it proved it by laughing in the Winchester's face.

"Do you think your scare tactics will work?" It asked tauntingly. "Your pathetic attempts of threatening me are nothing compared to what he'd do to me if I even think about telling you." It let out a muffled yell when Dean poured the holy water down its throat and he backed up, watching the demon choke and cough before it regained its composure. "You can shove that up the other end as well, but I ain't going to tell you anything." It smirked, a trail of blood dripping from the corner of its mouth.

It was useless. The interrogation had been going on for hours now and it didn't look like the demon was going to reveal anything to them despite what they did. Giving a small nod to Sam, the younger Winchester began to chant in Latin and the demon began to twist and pull at its bond as the words began to take effect and force it out of its host.

"I've heard what they're planning on doing to you, Potter, and I'll tell you this, I can't wait to see you down there." It forced out, chuckling despite the pain the exorcism brought upon it.

Dean growled low in his throat and was about to make his way back towards the thrashing figure when Harry stopped him by placing his hand on the man's arm.

"Let's go outside." He suggested. Sam was able to do the job alone and with a small nod, Dean led him out of the abandoned cabin where Harry moved to perch on the trunk of the Impala. He could practically feel the anger and helplessness radiating off of the older man and when he moved close enough to Harry, he reached out and wrapped his arms around the other's waist. Immediately Dean stopped to prevent knocking Harry off of the car and he returned the embrace, sharing his warmth with the slightly chilled wizard.

As the days began to count down to Harry's death, his temperature was slowly dropping and he was beginning to think that maybe his demise would come from freezing to death. He highly doubted it but it was a thought.

"We'll find a way." The older hunter spoke into his hair and Harry wasn't sure if Dean was trying to reassure him or himself. It didn't matter though and he clung on tighter, opting to stay silent and burrowing into the heat furnace called Dean Winchester.

Tilting his head up, his lips were captured by the other's and they shared a short sweet kiss between the two. It summed up their thoughts their thoughts and emotions perfectly.

_It's going to be okay._

_I know._

…

**Countdown: Three Months and Five Days**

Harry woke up to Tribbles squeaking and he looked around the room to find Sam and Dean nowhere in sight. From the cooling sheets on Dean's side of the bed, he deduced that it hadn't been too long since the man had gotten up and wondered curiously where they both could have gone.

Heading towards the door, he peered out and saw them a couple of feet away from the car. It was obvious that the two were having a private discussion and he was about to head back in to allow them their privacy until he heard his name. Ears perked up like an inquisitive cat, Harry slowly slinked closer to the two to hear what they were saying.

"Stop pretending that you're okay. You don't always have to act like you're strong, Dean." Sam said, his eyes reflecting his sorrow.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He heard Dean deny, turning away from his brother.

"I know you and when you're terrified, your defenses are up." The younger Winchester pointed out and tried to reach out to his brother. "You can talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about, Sam."

"Look, I know you're scared. I'm scared. It wouldn't hurt you if you showed it. It's like you don't even care about what's happening to Harry."

"I _do_ care." Dean said passionately, turning back towards his brother. "But what do you want me to do? Sit in a dark room and write a poem about how I'm feeling? Let's see, what rhymes with 'Shut up, Sam?'"

Harry bit his lip. He didn't want them to be arguing because of him. Seeing that Dean was heading back towards the room, Harry quietly snuck back in and went into the bathroom to get cleaned up for the day.

When he came out, Dean was perched on their shared bed cleaning the weapons with a flair that only someone with years of expertise can pull off. With a cursory glance around the room, he could see that Sam had yet come back to the room and he frowned.

"Where's Sam?" Harry asked.

"Taking a walk." Dean replied, his voice gruff. He didn't look up from the gun in his hand that he was disassembling. Harry made his way closer to the older Winchester, mindful of the weapons splayed around and tentatively reached out to touch the man.

"Are you okay?"

For a moment, he didn't think Dean was going to answer but when he was about to retract his hand and give him some space, Dean placed the gun pieces aside and drew Harry into his lap. The move had startled Harry but he quickly recovered and made himself comfortable, placing a hand on top of the other's arm.

"I love ham."

"What?" Dean asked, his eyes alight with confusion at Harry's words. Harry allowed a small smile to appear on his face as he looked up at the Winchester.

"For your poem." He explained. "Shut up, Sam. I love ham. I think that's pretty fitting for you." It took a couple of seconds but Dean started to chuckle and the chuckle then turned into a full-blown laugh. He didn't think it was all that funny but he figured after all the tension, it was just good to be able to let go and laugh. It took a couple of minutes but Dean finally stopped laughing, regaining his self-control.

"So you heard, huh?" He asked.

"Yeah."

A small awkward pause came upon them until Dean spoke up, "I love ham, huh? Was that the best you could come up with?"

"Like you could've come up with anything better?" Harry challenged and tried to wiggle away from the hunter's fingers that began teasing his sides. "Watch out for the weapons!" He managed to gasp out from trying to refrain from laughing. His face began to turn red and he finally broke, his laughter filling the air.

Jerking away, he narrowly missed stabbing himself on a wayward knife and barely managed to land onto the other bed. Dean was quick to follow and he soon found himself pinned to the bed, his arms held above his head while the older Winchester laid comfortably on top of him. Trying to wiggle himself out of the hold, he froze when Dean let out low moan.

"You pervert." He said, his eyes glittering with amusement as well as the lust that was slowly building inside of him. Dean worked his free hand between them and groped Harry's own growing erection, smirking.

"You love it." He teased before leaning over to kiss Harry. The smaller man whined low in his throat when he couldn't free his hands and arched his back, trying to press closer to his captor. The kiss was electrifying and heat was coiling around in his stomach, his body yearning for the other.

His jeans were soon unbuttoned and unzipped and he gasped in pleasure when Dean's hand dove into his pants to grasp around his erection. Unwittingly, he spread his legs out where the man could settle himself happily between them. He felt Dean draw him out and he groaned low into the other's mouth from the sensation. He bucked up into the touch and pouted when Dean chuckled at his attempts.

"Who's the pervert now?" He asked tauntingly between kisses and Harry nipped at the man's bottom lip, sucking it into his own mouth. He desperately tried to free his hands but Dean held on tight and he whined again almost pathetically.

"Dean," he called out and he was rewarded with the man stroking up and down on his length. "Please." He uttered, not exactly sure what he wanted but he just knew that he needed _more._ His plea seemed to egg Dean on and pretty soon, his pants were pulled down lower onto his thighs and the older man had undo his own jeans to pull his own heat out.

Upon contact, they groaned at the sensation of pleasure that ran through them and tightening his grip on Harry's wrists, he began to ground their erections against one another that intensified the delicious feeling of gratification. Pants and groans filled the room as well as the smell of sex and it was to Harry's frustration that his hands were still pinned.

His mouth was plundered by the Winchester and their tongues slid against each other in a mockery of what their erections were doing. Feeling his orgasm approaching, Harry arched upwards and biting down onto Dean's bottom lip, he came. Dean quickly followed, the sensation of pain from Harry biting down on his lip and the pleasure from below overloading his senses and his cum splattered onto the younger man that laid beneath.

Dean finally released Harry's wrists and rolled to the side, pulling him into a loose embrace. They laid there quietly for a moment before Harry realized whose bed they were occupying.

"Sam's not going to be too happy." He pointed out, trying to sit up and failing when Dean tightened his grip.

"Sam's not happy unless he has something to gripe about." The older man said. It was clear that he was still upset with his brother and Harry frowned.

"Dean," he began but Dean cut him off.

"Don't worry about it." He said, laying a kiss on the side of Harry's neck. "We'll work things out eventually and everything will be okay." Harry could only hope that that was true.

…

**Countdown: Two Months and Twenty-Eight Days Left**

It turned out that Dean's reassurance that he and Sam were going to be okay were far from true. For a week now, the tension surrounding the two brothers was palpable and they had resorted to making Harry the middle man of sorts. He had hoped that they would solve their problem or at least talk it out soon but it seemed the Winchesters' way was to prolong emotional confrontation between family members until it hit them in their face. At least it was for Dean.

Rubbing his throbbing scar, Harry sighed. Visions sent from Voldemort were annoying at best but at least they were sparse.

At the moment, Harry was sitting alone with Sam in a bar while Dean was trying to scrounge up some money at the pool tables. Sam was gloomily nursing his bottle of beer while Harry had foregone drinking for the night and tried to figure out to set things right between the two brothers.

"Wanna talk?" Harry asked the youngest Winchester and after a moment of contemplation, he nodded. "Let's go outside." He suggested when the people sitting near them roared in laughter and pounded on the table.

Together, they walked out the bar and Harry breathed in the cool night air, shivering a bit from the cold.

"Here." Sam said, handing over his jacket which after some hesitation, Harry took. It was getting harder to ignore the fact that his body's temperature was slowly dropping.

"Thanks." He immediately wrapped the jacket around him, pouting when he realized how large it was on his small form. "You're huge." He pointed out, jabbing a sleeve covered finger at Sam who chuckled.

"Or you're just entirely too small." Sam retaliated.

"Compared to you, everyone's small." Harry sniffed, hopping up onto the railings to sit upon while Sam leaned against it.

"I guess you could be right."

"I _am_ right." He said teasingly, drawing a smile from the other. They descended into silence then and Harry refrained from talking when it looked like Sam was struggling to put into words what was on his mind.

"Aren't you scared?" Sam asked at last, peering at Harry with lost and confused eyes. Time was slipping by so quickly and they were nowhere near close in finding out who held Harry's contract.

"I think so." Harry answered before correcting himself, opting to tell Sam the vague truth. "Not the process of possibly dying but more of trepidation of what's awaiting for me down there." Sam sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"At least you're honest." He said, a humorless smile adorning his face. "Dean's terrified but he won't admit it. It's just… for once, I want him to be able to rely on me. To confide in me instead of trying to act like he's strong."

"It's because he wants to protect you."

"I don't need protection."

"Maybe not, but he's lived his whole life devoted on protecting you. It's a habit hard to break from." Harry said. "And he does rely on you, Sam. More than you'd ever know. You two define each other. You live for one another." He added when the confusion in Sam's eyes didn't diminish.

Sam didn't know what to say and looked away from Harry, staring off into the distance.

"You may not see it, Sam, but it's true. You two have the strongest brother bonds I have ever seen and even if Dean doesn't outright tell you what he's feeling, you already _know_. There's no need for words, is there?"

"I guess not." Sam admitted. "But he still treats me like a kid."

"Face it, Sammy." He said, for once using the nickname that the Winchester barely tolerated. "You're forever going to be his little kid brother. Even when you two are in your eighties, he's still going to see his kid brother just like he's still going to be pronouncing his undying love to his 'baby.'"

Sam laughed but quickly sobered as a thought struck him.

"We've got less than three months." He pointed out, a look of helplessness splashed on his face. Harry remained silent, not knowing what to say. He was more worried about them after his death then his actual death date.

"What are you girls doing out here?" Dean asked, relieving Harry from responding. He draped an arm around the small wizard and leaned close with a grin. By the looks of it, he had won big at the pool tables. Harry rolled his eyes at the comment.

"I worry for you if you think women are equipped like we are." He said drily.

"Bah, with the way you two carry on whenever you're alone, the estrogen in the air is going to turn you into chicks." Harry nudged his elbow into Dean's rib, hopping off the railing when the man let go of him.

"Come on, Sam." He called, motioning Sam to follow him. "Us _girls_ should leave the macho man behind so we won't infect him with our feminine air." Chuckling, Sam made to follow and they headed towards the Impala leaving a stunned Dean behind.

"W-wait. Hold on just one second!" He called out when he recovered, running after them. "Come on, Harry. I was just kidding!"

…

**Countdown: Two Months and Fifteen Days Left**

"Come here, Sam." Dean said, drawing Sam's attention away from the poker game Harry and he had going while the older Winchester was fixing up the Impala. With one confused look on his face, he placed his hand down and went over to where his brother was. "Now you see this?" At Sam's nod, Dean continued on with his explanation in which Harry immediately drowned out, the mechanics of fixing a car lost on him.

Sitting back, he watched the two brothers crouching over the Impala's engine and couldn't help a smile from blooming across his face. Despite Sam's initially pointing out that Dean had never let him have a hand in fixing the car or barely letting the younger Winchester drive it at all, Harry could see that Sam was soaking in the knowledge that poured from his brother's mouth and clearly touched that Dean would let him become a part in repairing the older Winchester's baby.

Petting Tribbles, the pygmy puff let out a hum of delight and he allowed himself to sit back and relax. From the looks on the Winchester's faces, especially Sam's, Harry concluded that it was worth putting his life on the line when he had tampered with the Impala's engine earlier on in the day.

It was just his luck that Dean held no suspicion to what he had done because _no one_ messed with his car. He sighed.

Ah well, what the man didn't know won't hurt Harry in the end.

…

**Countdown: One Month and Twenty Five Days Left**

Harry woke up with a start, a scream clawing at his throat to come out but he swallowed it down while clutching his chest in an attempt to still his fast beating heart. He could feel Dean's hands anchoring him, bringing him back to reality and out of the dream world and he shuddered as he recalled the dream, or was it vision, he had just moments before.

Sam and Tribbles lay undisturbed on the other bed and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. At least he hadn't woken up everyone up. He had earlier insisted that he was fine sleeping on the couch that the room provided but Dean wouldn't have none of it, concerned and unwilling to let Harry suffer his nightmares alone.

It had started a few days ago, haunting him. Taunting him. His scar wasn't throbbing so he knew that it wasn't Voldemort's doing but it caused panic to run through him more than the threats that spewed from the dark wizard's mouth.

"_Who do you think I should kill first?" The demon in Harry's form asked with a malicious smile on its face. Harry watched in horror as it ran a finger down Dean's cheek, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. "I personally would love to sink my teeth into this one. I think he'd be a screamer."_

Harry clenched his eyes shut and clutched onto Dean's shirt. He felt arms encircle around him, encasing him in their warmth and protecting him from the nightmares that still haunted him.

"_Sooner or later, Harry. You're going to become me." Demon Harry smiled mockingly at him. Where emerald colored eyes should be, there was only blackness. A neverending void which held only cruelty and a hunger to cause suffering. "This is what you're going to become." It had said, its voice distorted. It circled around Harry like a predator would its weakened prey before striking. "When you go to Hell, Harry, this is what you'll become."_

"You want to talk about it?" Dean asked softly into his hair and he snapped out of the trance that he had gone into. He shivered and shook his head, burrowing into the other man. He felt weak and vulnerable for allowing a dream to succumb him to such lengths of neediness but he felt comforted knowing that Dean didn't mind.

After all the nightmares and visions back in Hogwarts, no one had ever taken him into their arms and held him; reassuring him that he still existed. He could sense that Dean was restraining himself from forcing the issue and it made his heart swell from love for the older man.

"Not yet." Harry said. "Please, just hold me." He begged, giving into his moment of weakness because it was _Dean _that was comforting him and no one else. In response to his plea, the older Winchester just tightened his hold on him and laid his head on top of Harry's.

Clinging to the man, Harry allowed himself to get lost in his scent and his trembling slowly began to decrease. His breathing eventually calmed and still in the tight embrace of the man he love, his eyes fluttered shut and he drifted off to sleep once more. His dreams were more peaceful this time around as Dean stayed awake to guard over his small form.

…

**A/N:** And the countdown begins. Time is flying by pretty fast, huh? I think a little bit of everything was tossed into this chapter. From arguing to Harry and Dean action to brotherly bonding and not to mention Harry starting to feel vulnerable. If you feel up to it, tell me what you think. =]

Thanks for all the comments and reviews and thanks a bunch for reading. =D


	16. 15

Chapter Fifteen

**Final Month**

Harry was shivering as he tried to wrap his trembling fingers around the warm cup of tea in front of him. His eyes had bags underneath them and his face had gone from a tanned appearance to a pale and almost sickly white. He donned nearly all of the sweaters he had packed along with him along with Dean's favorite leather jacket and he was still shaking from the infernal cold that never seemed to leave him now a days.

He glanced over at Sam and Dean on their own respective beds and he couldn't help but envy their ability to sleep. For the past month now, Harry's sleep had been marred by the nightmares that plagued him and he was scared that he was slowly losing his perception of reality. Sometimes even when he was awake, he could see shadows that moved on their own and eyes that flashed with deceptive kindness only for it to leap out at him in an endeavor to steal his soul.

He was slowly losing his mind or was it just Hell beckoning him; constantly reminding him that he only had thirty more days until he became a resident down there. If it wasn't dreams of Harry losing himself and becoming a bloodthirsty demon, it was of Voldemort and whispered details of what was to come. It would be just like the dark wizard to haunt him even in death.

He let out a soft tired sigh and took a sip of his tea. Dean shifted a bit in his sleep, an arm unconsciously seeking out for Harry but he never woke, much to the relief of Harry. The older man had spent many sleepless nights in an attempt to ward away his nightmares but even he could see that it was taking a toll on the man. No wanting to become a burden, he had taken to crawling out of bed when Dean had fallen asleep and climb back in when he was close to waking. It had been three days since he has had any sleep.

He smiled slightly at the sight of Tribbles sleeping comfortably on top of Dean's forehead and held back the laugh that threatened to emerge, afraid that he'll wake them. Lifting his wand, he silently cast a heating charm onto his cooling tea and sighed in distraught when the effort failed. He placed the cup down.

His magic had been acting kind of 'wonky' as the older Winchester would describe it, becoming a confusing mixture of stability as well as instability as the days went by. He could feel his magic coiling around tighter and tighter around his magical core and he wasn't sure what to make of it. Asking Severus, the man had showed a brief moment of concern before covered it with his usual charming self and had promised to look into it.

The mystery was still unsolved.

The trembling was getting worse now and he clenched his teeth in an attempt to prevent them from chattering. He leaned back against the wall of the alcove he was sitting in, curling his legs beneath him. Clearing his mind, he let himself fall into a small trance; not sleeping but not awake.

"Harry?" Dean's gruff voice filled the room, snapping him out of his trance. The older man had sat up in bed, Tribbles now sleeping soundly on the nightstand, and had thrown back the covers to make his way towards Harry who was watching him with a blank state of mind. It drew a concerned look from the Winchester. "Harry?" He asked again, reaching out a hand to run it through Harry's hair. "What are you doing over here?"

"I couldn't sleep." He answered back softly. "Go back to sleep, Dean." He bit back a yelp of surprise when he found himself picked up, cradled against the other's chest; awkward bundle of sweaters and all. "What are you doing?" He hissed quietly, struggling against the hold. He didn't want to sleep and it wasn't fair to Dean to have his sleep constantly disturbed.

"Going to bed." He said and Harry could detect a grin from the man's tone.

"I don't want to go to bed." Harry replied petulantly, trying to cross his arms but failing from the thick layers. He settled on pouting while Dean laid him gently on the bed and quickly wrapped the blanket securely around before joining him.

"You're freezing." Dean pointed out worriedly, drawing Harry close to his chest. "You should've woke me up." He rebuked, rubbing the small wizard's frozen hands in his own warm ones.

"Didn't want to bother you." He admitted, soaking in the warmth that was offered so freely for his taking. "Go to sleep, Dean."

"Nah, I got enough."

Considering that it was now around three in the morning and they had only checked into the inn around midnight, it was hardly enough sleep for the man to function properly on. The weight of guilt increased at the thought and he felt like he was becoming more of a burden that the Winchesters felt obligated to take care of than someone that could offer them assistance. How he hated that feeling.

"Get some sleep." Dean said gruffly and despite him wanting to deny that the demand, he found himself lulled into it by the older man's breathing. Consciousness slowly leaving him, he could've sworn he felt Dean kiss him on the head before uttering the words, 'I love you' into his hair.

_I love you, too_. He wanted to respond but before he could, he was swept away by the tides of the dream realm and he found himself at last sleeping soundly after three days of being deprived of it.

…

"No." Harry said sternly, cutting Sam off when he started mentioning theories on gaining immortality. He had spent years dealing with a homicidal maniac that had an unhealthy obsession with trying to find ways to live forever and he was sure he did not want to go down that same path.

"But Harry-"

"No, Sam." He repeated; his face set and showed that he was not to be swayed. They got into a staring contest of wills while Dean wisely chose to stay out of it, opting to stick as much food in his mouth to prevent himself from having to talk. Seeing that the smaller man was simply not going to budge on his stance, Sam deflated and lowered his eyes to the table. Harry had won this round. "Immortality is more of a curse than a gift." He said softly, trying to make the youngest Winchester understand.

"What would be left of your humanity if you had to keep killing others just so you'd be able to live?" He asked, wrapping his trembling fingers around his hot cup of coffee. "It turns you ugly from the inside out and you'll lose yourself to insanity as the years progress."

"Sounds like you know that from experience." Dean pointed out, taking a small break from devouring his hamburger. Harry gave a depreciative smile.

"Voldemort made sure of that." He focused steady green eyes at Sam. "So please, find any other way but that. Nothing good ever comes out of going down that path." Sam let out a breath of air, reluctance on his face.

"Okay." He finally answered but it worried Harry that the other was getting desperate enough to even consider going to such lengths for him. His mind flashed back to the conversation he had with Severus only two days ago in the middle of the night.

"_Did you have to call so late in the night?" Harry asked quietly when he had successfully managed to sneak away from the watchful eye of Dean Winchester. Ever since discovering that Harry had avoided sleeping, he had become more alert and aware of his movements; especially at night. _

"_By your charming appearance, it doesn't look like it matters anyway." Was the snarky reply. Harry sighed in exasperation, shivering in the cooling car. "What is it, Potter?" Despite carrying the air of something calm and collected, Harry could see that the man was slowly fraying at the ends. He felt the guilt within him tripled and his stomach turned into knots. "And don't you __**dare**__ say that it's nothing." _

"_My temperature keeps going down." He admitted, rubbing the scar on his forehead. "And there's the nightmares." _

"_Nightmares?" Severus asked, his face set into a grim expression. Knowing where the man's thoughts were going, he quickly cleared the misconception. _

"_Not Voldemort." He ignored the older wizard's hiss at the name. "Though he comes and goes at times as well." He brushed a hand through his hair. "I actually prefer visions of him than the nightmares." He admitted. "The nightmares show what I can become once I…" He trailed off. He didn't need to finish the sentence for Severus to know what he meant. "I'm afraid that I'm going to lose myself."_

"_Lose yourself?" Severus snorted. "A stubborn, big-headed fool like you? If I couldn't cure you of your arrogant ways while you were attending Hogwarts, I sincerely doubt there are others that will be able to." Harry smiled softly at the compliment hidden within the insult._

"_You're just a big ol' softy, that's why." He teased and he could practically see the other man bristle at his comment. It was a silent agreement between the two that they would try to act as naturally as possible, given the dire situation. "How's Charlie? I hope you didn't actually steal the mirror, did you?" _

"_It's more convenient for the mirror to be here in my quarters than in Romania when he happens to be living in Hogwarts at the moment." The man sniffed._

"_What?" Harry asked in surprise. He hadn't been able to talk to Charlie since the older man had confessed to him and it was the first time that Severus had mentioned that he was staying at Hogwarts._

"_Mr. Weasley has taken an extended leave from his work and is now assisting me." Severus answered. So Charlie was researching ways to get Harry out of the deal as well. _

"_How is he?" He asked._

"_Like an obsessive halfwit." Was the answer. "He spends every waking day researching and has barely had any sleep." From Severus's pale and heavy bags under his eyes, Charlie wasn't the only one functioning on little to no sleep. _

"_I'm sorry." Harry said, feeling as if that was the only thing he could say but knowing that it was simply not enough. _

"_Your pitiful apology is not going to be accepted." The older wizard snapped. "Keep those words to yourself because I personally don't want to hear it. How your Gryffindor pride must be crying at your deplorable behavior." Hearing Severus's words gave Harry strength and the nightmares didn't seem so frightening as before. The man was right. He couldn't help but grin. "What are you grinning about now?" _

"_Just realizing how much I love your personality." He watched in amusement while Severus sputtered and turned red at the unexpected compliment. _

"_Do you have a screw loose, Potter?" The man practically yelled but Harry just continued to smile. It was always great fun to tease the older man. He sighed softly, realizing that Dean would soon be waking up and causing a ruckus when he discovered that Harry was missing. _

"_Not that I don't enjoy our conversations, but what did you wanted to talk about?" He asked. Severus sneered but a small hint of a blush could be seen crawling up from his neck to his cheeks. _

"_Just checking to see if you didn't go to an earlier grave." The man said. Their relationship must seem twisted in a sense to an outsider's view but Severus's words warmed Harry's heart and saddened him at the same time. _

"_And miss this conversation with you? Never." He assured, grinning cheekily. _

"_Harry," Severus's mask still might be in place but his emotional turmoil shone through in his voice. Harry knew what the man was going to say before he even had to say it. _

"_I know." He had said, sighing. "I kind of already assumed that there wasn't going to be a way out of it." The older wizard seemed reluctant to say anything and Harry knew better than to rush the man._

"_There are potions out there that I can brew that can put a stopper to death but there's nothing in the world that I've come across to stop your __**soul**__ from being taken away." The man admitted, looking frustrated. _

"It's better to die than have a soulless shell wander around the world." Harry murmured.

"What did you say?" Dean asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. He gave the older Winchester a faint smile which reassured him enough to continue eating. It was just his luck that Dean was too engrossed in his meal along with most of Harry's to pay attention but his remark was unable to escape Sam who was now staring at him with discernable eyes.

It looked like the youngest Winchester was going to question him on it but he decided against it, for now.

"We should get going soon, shouldn't we?" Harry asked. There was a possible hunt going on in the west coast side involving mysterious deaths and despite the Winchesters' protests that they should be focusing on finding a solution for Harry, they stood no chance against Harry's sheer determination on not being so much of a burden where he prevented them from doing their job.

"Yeah, let's go." Dean said. "Hey, can I get some pie to go?"

"You bottomless pit."

"You love me."

"Jerk."

"Bitch."

Harry just laughed at their antics.

…

Their mood quickly turned darker when coming into the town, Harry informed them that it was a wizard that was responsible for the deaths after gathering all the information that they could get. Watching Dean pick the lock to the front door, Harry shivered when he felt the tinge of dark magic that was seeping through the cracks of the seemingly homely house.

Entering the house, Harry felt vulnerable more than ever without the aid of his magic to fight off the taint that seemed to latch onto him. He tried to shake off the feeling, urging his magic to spread out to search for the enemy but it stubbornly refused; staying wrapped tightly around his magical core.

Giving up, he walked into the living room where it was covered with doilies and quilts that the woman had probably spent her time knitting if the basket of yarn and hooked needles was any indicating. Like the other victims that had fell by the dark wizard's wand, the woman had red hair and green eyes. It was a personal attack against Harry.

He fingered a hanging portrait lightly, taking in the image of the woman with her family. Was he to blame for her death?

"Harry?" Sam called out and Harry dropped his hand, turning to face the older man.

"Did you find anything?" He asked just for the sake of it.

"No." He answered, stepping closer to him. "Is anything wrong?" The uneasiness Harry felt must've shown on his face and he shook his head.

"No," he replied. "We should get out of here if there's nothing here." Walking to the front door with Sam, Harry froze when he suddenly felt a burst of magic coming from the second floor. "Where's Dean?" He asked but without waiting for an answer, he had already rushed up the flight of stairs; his heart pounding from fear. Following where he felt the magic was thickest, he burst into what seemed to be the bedroom.

"Dean?" He called out, gripping his wand in hand despite knowing that his magic was of no use to him at the moment. "Dean!" He yelled out.

"What happened?" Sam asked from behind him, gun in hand.

"The dark wizard was here." Harry answered. "I think he just took Dean." Bending down, he found Dean's gun on the ground and showed it to Sam; his face set into a grim line. He tried to shove down the fear he could feel crawling up his chest and gripping his heart. Who knows what the wizard was going to do to Dean. "We gotta get out of here." He said, striding out of the room and down the stairs with a purpose.

"Where are we going to look for him?" Sam asked, his eyes shining with panic at the kidnap of his brother. Honestly, Harry wasn't too sure where to start searching but they couldn't just stand still at a lost. His mind ran a list of all the possible locations that the wizard could've taken Dean and he could only come up with one place.

The dark wizard had murdered all of those women that had held even the slightest resemblance to Harry's mother and now he had taken Dean. He bit his lip and turned to Sam. He sincerely hoped that he was right about this.

"Are there any bell towers nearby?"

…

Two hours.

It had taken a total of two nerve-racking hours for Sam and Harry to get to locate the nearest bell tower and to hot wire the Impala to get there. Pulling the car into a stop, they immediately got out of the car and started to head towards the tower.

Praying that he was right, Harry led the way while Sam followed close behind; gun drawn and ready to use. As they climbed up the spiraling flight of stairs, he was beginning to grow more confident that his guess had been right as the magic got thicker and thicker the closer he got to the top.

With a small signal between the two, Harry broke down the door while Sam burst through; his gun aimed and his finger seconds away from pulling the trigger.

"Don't shoot!" Dean's voice called out, startling the two. He was tied to the railing and had suffered mild cuts to his body.

"Dean?" Sam asked, about to lower his weapon until Harry stopped him. The small wizard looked over the older Winchester critically, survival tactics from back in the war kicking in.

"Tell us something that only Dean would know." He said, half of his attention on Dean while the other half was searching out for potential threats and enemies.

"Aw, come on. Are you serious?" Dean replied but Harry held his stern look. He was beyond serious. The older man frowned and contemplated. "All right. After the fight with Sam, we had a little fun on his bed." He said without shame.

"What?" Sam exclaimed, appalled while Harry fought back the mortification that he was feeling.

"Oh relax, Sammy. It was just that one time and you didn't even sleep on it again. We left soon after."

"I _sat_ on that bed before we left." Sam pointed out, untying his brother. As much as their conversation was amusing albeit embarrassing, there were more important things to discuss at the moment.

"Did you happen to catch sight of the wizard?" Harry asked, his skin itching from the magic that clung onto him. It seemed to be begging for him to use it but he rejected it; unable to control the disgust willing within him at its touch.

"It was the barkeep." Dean grunted out, rubbing his wrists when he was free. "Son of a bitch caught me by surprise and did the vanishing trick to bring me here."

"Barkeep?" Harry asked faintly. There was only one barkeep that Harry knew of that was a wizard but it couldn't be possible, could it? Who was he kidding, anything was possible it seemed. "Rook?"

"I'm glad you remember me, Mr. Potter." The man in question spoke, standing at the entrance where Harry had broken down the door. Harry whirled around to face the man, clutching his wand tightly. His magic may not be working properly but the other wizard didn't have to know that. "I had hoped my actions would draw your attention." Rook continued on, unbothered by the wand that was pointed at him.

"What are you doing? You're an auror."

"I _was_ an auror." He said, shrugging his shoulders. "But I'm not anymore."

"You were still working for them."

"And I was." He replied agreeably, tossing a spell to tie up the Winchesters when they tried to move. "Until the gate you let opened, letting hundreds of demons into the world and then it became every wizard for himself. You see, a demon approached me and gave me two options."

"And what were they?" Harry asked and Rook's eyes looked beyond him and towards the Winchesters. Towards Sam, to be more precise.

"To deliver her Sam Winchester or die."

"What?"

"You're young, Potter. I'm pretty sure you heard me the first time around." Rook said. "I'm sorry but when it comes down to it, my life is of greater importance than a muggle."

"You're a coward." Harry spat. He couldn't believe that this was the man that he had met what seemed like ages ago.

"I suppose I am." The man said. "But I'll be a coward who's alive."

"Why does the demon want Sam?"

"To kill him." Rook answered easily. "The boy-king who was supposed to lead the demon army but hadn't stepped up to fulfill his destiny. Killing him would mean there'd be no competition or rival threatening to steal the position from her."

"Sam would never lead the demon army."

"It doesn't matter if he does or not. All that matters is that he _could _so he has to die." It seemed odd to Harry that the man was giving up so much information so freely. Behind him, he heard Dean shifting around and tried to will his magic to come to the surface. It refused.

"What's the demon's name?" He asked, testing the small theory he had. There was something that bothered him about this whole situation.

"Now why would I tell you that, Potter?" Rook said. "What did you think about the women I murdered?"

"They resembled my mum." He answered, feeling that there was more to it.

"Ah, Lily. She was always such a wild jack." What? Harry raised stunned eyes to try to look into Rook's eyes but the man refused to meet his eyes. "It was such a shame that they had to die." Did he hear a trace of regret and guilt in the man's tone?

"They wouldn't have had to die if it weren't for you." Dean said, glaring at Rook.

"_Crucio._"

Hearing the curse pass the wizard's lips, Harry immediately moved his body to block Dean; using his body as a makeshift shield. The curse hit him and enveloped him, sending him crashing down to the ground. He bit down on his lip to prevent from screaming, his blood boiling from the pain the curse caused. Hazily, he could see that Rook was speaking but he couldn't make the words out.

"Harry!" He thought he heard the two Winchesters call out in concern but he wasn't too sure. The curse was lifted and he was left gasping for breath on the ground, attempting to control the spasming of his muscles. Getting onto his hands and knees, he was still reeling from the pain but it was manageable. It had to be.

"So it's true that the Boy-Who-Lived can't help but be a hero." Rook remarked amusedly and Harry glared at him through the fringes of his hair.

"I'll kill you!"

"Leave him alone!" Were the two cries from the Winchesters.

"What loyal friends you have." The wizard said, eyeing the two.

"Leave them out of this." Harry demanded, getting up onto his feet and unconsciously, he summoned the Gryffindor's sword to him. His magic may be failing him but the sword had yet let him down when he needed it.

"It seems like you still have some tricks up your sleeve." It felt like they were playing poker again in the bar. A deadly one where Harry had to figure out what Rook's words really meant before it was far too late.

Rook threw a severing curse at Harry and he used the sword to bat it away. Rushing towards the ex-auror, he swung the sword only for the older wizard to dodge it and throw another spell at him. Harry knew that this fight wasn't going to be easy but he had to press on. He couldn't afford to lose.

Unable to properly dodge a blasting curse, Harry was sent flying towards the wall and smacked his head hard against the surface. His vision swam for a couple of seconds but it was enough for the other wizard to land a cutting curse upon his body. It stung and he could hear Sam and Dean call out to him in panic.

The ex-auror pointed his wand at Dean, a curse ready on his lips. "Avada-"

Gritting his teeth, he adjusted his stance and with the stealth of a snake, Harry lashed out at the other man; stabbing the sword clearly through the middle of his chest cavity. The noise of the sword sliding through muscle and bones was sickening and he felt Rook grip his shoulders. The older wizard leant in close to his ear.

"Seems like you won this hand." He froze at the words. It was as he had suspected. "Good game, Potter." The man said and pushed himself off of Harry, pulling himself off of the sword.

At the death of the wizard, the rope holding the Winchesters disappeared and they found themselves free.

"Harry?" Dean said, rushing over to the smaller man. Harry didn't respond. He couldn't respond as he stared down at the cooling body of the ex-auror; sword gone from his hand. It seemed Rook was a loyal informant until the very end.

The chill permeating through him for once not due to his illness.

…

**Bobby's House**

**Countdown: Three More Days**

"Come on, Harry. You need to eat." Dean tried cajoling the small wizard. A nervous energy seemed to have pervaded the household with an air of helplessness that appeared to cling to the three hunters as the countdown came closer and closer to the final day.

As it were, Harry's temperature had dropped so low that he could barely function anymore since his limbs had become so numb. Looking at his appearance now, he was pale as a ghost and his lips tinged blue despite the weather still warm as ever outside.

He had spoken to Severus and Charlie a few days before and it wasn't likely that he was going to contact them ever again. He had said his good byes and despite feeling guilty on not informing the other remaining Weasleys, he couldn't bring himself to be the cause of their sorrow. He'd only hope George would forgive him.

After the fiasco with Rook, who gave them more information than they've ever gotten from demons, they now had a name for the demon who views Sam as a rival.

Lily. Lilith.

There wasn't much information about her in the books they could find but supposedly she is one of the strongest demons that is now walking the earth. At least now though, they had a name to identify the demon with. Harry hated that the name was so similar to his mother's.

Coming back to Bobby's, Sam had either been hitting the books or staying near Harry while Dean was practically attached to Harry; only leaving him alone when either of them had to use the bathroom or he went to fetch the shivering wizard some food. They were all worried about how Harry just didn't seem to be able to retain heat.

Eyeing the food with distaste, he turned his body away from it. The fireplace seemed to have a fire going non-stop for Harry and the other three residences had taken to wearing tank tops to battle against the stuffiness and overbearing heat that still wasn't able to warm Harry.

"Harry, just take a bite." Dean wheedled, holding a spoon up to his mouth. Embarrassed, he tried to shove the fork away but the older man was insistent, bringing the spoon back in place. Knowing that he wasn't going to win this small battle of wills, he opened his mouth and was promptly fed the hot broth.

It was a small luxury of warmth that was a temporary fix and Harry began to hate it. It warmed him for a brief second and made the cold seem colder than it previously was. After a couple more spoonfuls, he turned his head away. He didn't mean to make the Winchester worry but it was torture every single time. It was like a toy dangled in front of a child only for it to be taken away the next second.

Putting the bowl aside, Dean pulled Harry into his embrace and holding the smaller man close. Harry could feel the sweat trickling down Dean's back when he encircled his arms around the man and bit his lip.

"I'm sorry." He murmured into Dean's collarbone, trying to soak up the heat.

"There's nothing to apologize for." The older man replied. "Besides, it isn't too bad. You're a pretty good ice cube that's keeping me cool." Harry laughed softly, cuddling in closer. He yelped in surprise when Dean suddenly stood up, carrying him.

"What are you doing?"

"Finding a place that's more private." Was the answer. Harry found himself carried up the stairs and into a room where it held two beds. It was the room where Sam and Dean would sleep whenever they stopped by. He was dropped rather abruptly on one of the beds and he glared at the older Winchester.

"I am _not_ a sack of-" He was cut off when Dean crawled on top of him and kissed him roughly. He thrusted his tongue into Harry's and Harry couldn't help but moan in pleasure. Raising his hands up, he wrapped it around the other's neck and pulled him down. Dean hissed at Harry's cold hands when it came into contact upon his heated body but he didn't pull away, opting to slide the sweaters the smaller man was wearing up and off.

He chucked it to the floor and quickly divested his own tank top. Despite the chill he felt from the loss of his sweaters, Harry was more than willing to suffer just a bit more for the delicious pleasure that he knew was coming. Plus, the friction was sure to warm him up and if not, they could both use the distraction.

Frustrated that his fingers wasn't listening to his commands, he waited until Dean unbuttoned his pair of jeans and when the man had yanked down his pants, Harry swooped in and reversed the position until he was on top. Giving the man a mischievous smirk, he trailed a chilled finger down from the man's stomach until he wrapped his fist around the growing erection.

"Ah!" Dean cried out from the cold but before his cock could soften, Harry had leant downwards and licked a trail from the base to tip. Encircling the head, he wrapped his lips around it and began to tease the slit. "Oh god!" The older man said, placing a hand behind Harry's head to urge him to take it in deeper.

Taking the hint, he began to bob his head; slowly taking more and more into his mouth each time he went down. Alternating between swirling his tongue and hollowing his cheeks, his fist pumped what he couldn't fit into his mouth.

"Stop." Dean panted, stopping Harry when he felt that his orgasm was coming close. Sitting back, the small wizard allowed himself to be maneuvered onto his back while Dean took off his own pair of jeans and slid it off his legs. They were now both naked.

"Lube?" Harry asked. He knew that Dean had purchased some not too long ago and the man got off the bed to retrieve it. Without the older man on the bed with him, he felt the cold creeping up on him but before he became a shivering mass, Dean was back with a triumphant grin. "Have you ever done this before?"

At the other man's look, it was an obvious no. Switching their positions once more, Harry straddled Dean while he opened the bottle of lube. He squeezed some onto his fingers and positioning in a way that the older Winchester would be able to see what he was doing, he slowly began to stretch himself; moaning at the sensation that it brought on.

It had been too long.

Working three fingers into himself, he could hear Dean's breathing hitch and knew that the man was more than turned on. With his free hand, he took one of Dean's hands and motioned him to apply lube to it before moving it to his opening. Biting his lower lip, he removed his own fingers and pressed the older man's fingers against his opening, impaling himself on it.

"Hot damn." Harry chuckled, slowly riding himself on the fingers. He cried out when Dean's finger seemed to brush against the sweet bundle inside. "Can I put it in now?" The man asked and Harry nodded.

The fingers were quickly removed and with trembling fingers, either it was from the cold or pleasure Harry wasn't too sure anymore, he gripped Dean's erection and guided it to his stretched entrance. Coils of heat and pleasure seemed to be growing in the pit of his stomach and he moaned when Dean's tip managed to penetrate him.

Dean had moved his hands to grasp Harry's hips and with utmost patience, he controlled himself from thrusting in deep in the heat that belonged to the smaller man. Raising himself up and then lowering himself, Harry took Dean inch by inch until he was fully impaled and when Dean felt his self-control was about to snap, he was given the okay to begin moving.

Flipping Harry onto his back, he pulled out until only the tip remained and thrusted back in; earning a cry from Harry when he managed to hit the bundle of nerves within. Harry wrapped his legs around Dean's waist, drawing him in closer and before long, they became lost in the wave of passion.

Thrusting his hips and burying himself deep within Harry, he captured the smaller man's lips with his own and the pleasure from his orgasm swept through him; satisfied when Harry gave a cry of his own and came all over their stomachs. They stayed in that position for a little while longer while they regained their breaths.

"I love you, Dean." Harry said softly, no longer able to keep it to himself.

"I love you, too." Dean replied, a sadness and desperation seemed to dwell in his eyes. He slowly withdrew from Harry and laid down next to the smaller man, pulling him into a hug. They basked in their love for one another and tried to pretend that they had eternity instead of just three more days to spend with each other.

…

**Countdown: Final Day On Earth**

A ring of salt was poured out around them.

Harry sat in Dean's lap while Sam sat beside his brother, holding onto one of Harry's hands. Bobby sat on Dean's other side, offering them all emotional support. They were all watching the clock as it drew closer and closer to midnight. The time that Harry was destined to die.

The Colt was held in Dean's hand and despite Harry telling them that he didn't want them to spend all the remaining bullets for his sake, he was rebuffed for even trying to get them to not use it for him. But with only four bullets left, he felt that they should save it for something bigger.

**11:50 P.M.**

He could hear howling outside of Bobby's house now, vicious and calling for blood. His blood. He tried to not let that bother him too much.

Cuddling in deeper into Dean's embrace, he tried to memorize the man's scent and how good it felt to be held by him. The squeeze from Sam made him focus on the youngest Winchester and he committed to memory all the details that made up Sam and Dean.

**11:55 P.M.**

The snarls and growls were coming closer now and he tried to push away from Dean but the man stubbornly held on, refusing to let him go. He wasn't sure what to expect from this confrontation between the hunters and the hellhounds.

Three minutes before it struck midnight, the door to Bobby's house flung open despite the salt that was laid there and Harry could see the hellhounds as clear as day although the hunters didn't. They were uglier than he had imagined and traveled in groups more than the bullets that Dean had in the Colt. They slowly made their way towards Harry, snarling and gnashing their teeth at him.

"Where are they, Harry?" Dean asked, pointing his gun where he believed they were. Sam and Bobby each held their own guns but regular guns weren't going to be killing these dogs.

"Everywhere." Harry said softly. They were literally surrounded. "They're waiting for the clock to strike midnight."

"Fuck that!" Dean cursed and hearing the scratching against the wooden floors, he pulled the trigger and managed to hit the hellhound in its head. It gave a yelp before it keeled over, the bullet effectively killing it. Having one of its members killed, it caused a riot and Harry was no longer their only target.

Two minutes before midnight.

Sam and Bobby both started shooting and Dean pulled Harry close to his chest while he shot off the remaining three bullets he had at the dogs, managing to kill two more and seriously injuring one. The ring of salt was slowly blown away and when it broke, they were all dead and Harry was not willing to accept that.

Unknowingly Harry's eyes glowed like the Avada Kedavra curse and he broke out of Dean's grip to face the dogs head on.

"Back off." He commanded, feeling the tainted magic crackling around him. The hellhounds surprisingly listened to him and they backed down.

One minute before midnight.

Feeling the magic within him that had spent a month coiling around his magical core begin to unfurl, he suddenly knew how he was going to die and it was a whole lot better than death by being chewed on any day.

"Harry," Dean said, his eyes shining from grief and heartbreak.

"I love you, Dean." Harry said, drawing the man into a deep kiss. "Take care of each other and Bobby," he paused, smiling at the man. "Continue to watch over them, will you?"

"Of course I will." The oldest hunter in the group said gruffly.

His magic began to envelop his entire body and with the last moment of his life, he focused on Dean's heartbreaking face before the chill that had been pervading his body since the deal engulfed his senses and drew him into darkness.

The clock chimed.

It was midnight.

…

Emerald green eyes opened when he felt like his forehead was going to split in half from the pain and stared into familiar red eyes.

The owner of said red eyes smirked at him.

"Welcome to Hell, Potter. I've been waiting for you."

…

Part One finished!

**A/N:** Yeah, so… Harry died. =[ There were many people who were hoping that they would find a way out of the deal but when I started the story, it had already been decided that Harry was going to die. I'll be starting part two of the story immediately, I think and am contemplating whether I should add it as a new story or just continue it in this one. I'll most likely just continue. =]

I might do an interlude to show what's going on over on Severus's and Charlie's side when they were researching on ways to help Harry but I'm not sure yet if I will. It all depends, I guess. =]

To **hjamesp15**: I… can't tell you. =] It's a surprise! The answer will come up in the next update.

And never to forget, I'm glad to hear you all are enjoying the story and thanks for all the reviews, favorites, and alerts so far. =D It's encouraging that there are many people who are following the story and … that's about it.

Thanks for reading!


	17. 16

Part Two: Redeeming a Soul

Chapter Sixteen

**Winchesters**

Dean stood over Harry's grave holding back the tears he could feel prickling behind his eyes. The lost and devastation he felt was clawing and scratching at his insides and he briefly wondered how he could still be breathing from the pain emanating from within. He never thought he would come to love someone so much outside of his family, especially after Cassie, but he had and the agony of losing Harry twisted and stab at him until it left him feeling like an empty shell.

It had been two weeks since Harry had died in his arms and despite trying to pull himself together, Dean had found himself unable to do so; always coming back to stand by Harry's grave site. They had chosen an isolated area in a wooded area, away from the cemetery and away from prying eyes of the enemy. Bobby had suggested that he'd help burn the small man's body but Dean and Sam had rejected the idea vehemently.

They were going to find a way to get Harry back. They had to and when they did, Harry would need his body to come back to.

"Dean?" He heard Sam call for him but he didn't turn around, his eyes never leaving the small grave marker that he had made himself. It was simple, just how Harry would've wanted it he was sure.

He reached a hand out hesitantly and after a short pause, he touched the marker lightly; almost reverently. Reconfirming to himself that Harry was indeed dead and was not going to appear beside him any time soon. How he desperately wished that that was the case and that at any moment now, he would be graced with the sight of Harry's beautiful emerald green eyes but his wishes were barely ever granted it. Not since he was four.

He clenched his hand into a fist, pulling it away from the marker at the thought. It wasn't fair. It just simply was not fair. Harry was not supposed to die, he did not deserve this. Hadn't they all suffered enough throughout all these years? How much more torment will they all have to go through until it was enough?

"Dean?" Sam called out again and he closed his eyes, attempting to regain his composure. He couldn't allow himself to drown in his sorrows. He still had Sam, after all. He still had to take care of his brother. He had promised Harry.

A bottle of beer was offered to him then and he took it, taking a gulp of the poison. Sam was standing beside him now and the two brothers stood side by side in silence; Sam unsure what to say to comfort Dean and vice versa. The Winchesters, they were never too good with their words.

A small depressed squeak coming from near the grave marker broke the silence. Tribbles hadn't moved far from the grave in the past two weeks, squeaking in distress whenever Dean or Sam tried to remove it from its owner's grave.

"We'll find a way to get him out." Sam said with as much conviction as he could muster. They both had to believe it if they wanted to continue onwards.

"Yes, we will." Dean agreed while Sam bent down to coax the small pygmy puff into his hand. With one last lingering look at the grave, Dean's eyes flashed with purpose and raw determination. "And we'll take out all the sons of bitches we meet on the way."

…

**In Hell**

Harry swallowed back the scream that threatened to emerge from his throat and bit down on his bottom lip instead while Voldemort carved his skin from his body painstakingly slow. He wasn't sure how long the torture had been going on but he knew that it was far from over. His blood dripped down in droplets from the wounds that had been inflicted on him and his stomach churned from the sight of his own skin lying in small little heaps on the floor.

It was disturbing as it was disgusting. Screams of other tortured souls echoed all around him, joining together in a rather horrifying symphony. He wasn't sure how long he had been on the rack; it could have been hours or even years while he drowned in the onslaught of pain that never seemed to end.

A sickening plop reached his ears when Voldemort dropped another piece of his skin carelessly onto the ground and stepped back, giving Harry a small reprieve that he knew wasn't going to last long. He panted for air, slouching in his chains whose hooks were pierced through his skin. It hurt to move. It hurt to breathe and it was never going to stop.

"How are you enjoying your stay so far, Potter?" The hissing voice of Voldemort asked tauntingly, a smirk on his face. He focused his eyes of the dark wizard and spat at the man, his blood landing on the other's cheek.

"The company could've been better." He managed to gasp out. His head flew to the side at the slap he received and he felt the hooks tear his flesh when he unwittingly jerked from the impact.

"You'd think that after all these years, you've have learned to respect your betters." The dark wizard remarked, caressing the knife in his hand.

"What betters?" Harry asked, turning his head back towards his torturer. "Not you, I presume. From what I see, you're nothing but a pet to these demons." It was never a good idea to anger your captor but Harry was never one to back down from his enemies. Especially if it's Voldemort.

Raising the knife towards Harry's eyes, he smirked cruelly at the young wizard before saying, "Then we'll have to make it so you can't see."

He was proud to say he didn't scream even as his eyes were cut from his head.

And so it became his life. He was tortured until his body was beyond mangled only for his body to be intact once again the very next day for Voldemort to mutilate once more. It was exactly one year later when he met the demon that made everything leading up to this point seem like child's play.

It was the demon known as Alastair.

"Give in." Alastair had said after their first session, crooning almost lovingly into his ear. "All this would end if you did." Harry's emerald green eyes stared defiantly at the demon; slightly dulled but still sparkling with life that Voldemort hadn't managed to beaten out of him.

"Never." He swore.

"Too bad." The demon said, raising his knife once more.

It was his first time to ever scream since his time spent in hell and it certainly wasn't going to be his last.

…

**Forty Years Later**

Alastair placed the knife he was using down gently onto the tray and stood back to admire his work with appraising eyes.

"You look more beautiful every single time." He said, taking in the slump form of one Harry Potter. Harry couldn't summon the strength to even look up at the demon. "Will you give in to me?" Alastair asked, leaning in close to peer into dull eyes.

Head clouded by pain, he barely heard the question but he didn't need to hear it to be able to answer. His slit neck was slowly knitting itself together and he felt it ripping open again when he forced himself to shake his head. He refused.

"Too bad." Alastair always responded with those two words every time Harry rejected the offer. "There's still plenty of time for you to break." With that, he left; leaving the young wizard alone for his body to slowly regenerate itself.

It wasn't even an hour later that he felt his scar begin to burn and knew that Voldemort was coming. After years of pain being inflicted on his being, the twinge from his scar was just a mere tingle. He found it twistingly humorous that once upon a time his scar could down him if Voldemort was angry enough. His pain tolerance had increased throughout the years.

Merely ten seconds later, the presence of the dark wizard that just continued to haunt him appeared, his red eyes glittering in pleasure as he took in Harry's broken form.

"Ready to play?"

…

**Sixty Years Later**

Harry felt utterly and completely broken. Year after year he was torn apart and magically put back together and his mind simply could not handle it any longer. Once emerald green eyes were now a dull murky green that took in nothing and everything around him at the same time. He tried to spend his days remembering his life before he had arrived in hell but memories and events were slowly getting hazy and the only thing he could cling onto were the feelings of love he could invoke when he recalled cocky grins and dazzling hazel-green eyes. It was probably the only saving grace that prevented him from giving in to the demon.

"Harry Potter?" A smooth voice called out but Harry didn't even twitch. There were demons now and then that have come to taunt him and so he had come to ignore them, saving his strength to endure the next torture session that was sure to come. He heard footsteps coming closer to his form and found a surprisingly warm hand grab a hold of his chin and lifted his head upwards to study his face. "You are Harry Potter, aren't you? I've been looking for you."

Dull eyes took in the demon before him and noted the red clothing and armor that the other adorned. It was a demon he had never seen before.

A gentle hand pushed away the locks of hair covering his scar but he didn't, couldn't, let himself become deceived by the gesture. Before the cruelty came the kindness and he came to hate it as much as he hated his tormentors but after sixty years of fighting and struggling, he could no longer find the energy to even jerk his head away from the fingers loosely clasping his chin.

"I've been searching for you for sixty years now. I'm sorry that I couldn't come sooner." The demon said, lightly tracing the lightning bolt scar. Dimly, Harry noticed that the demon was deceptively handsome; a huge difference from all the visitors he's had in all his years. "Forgive me for not introducing myself. I am Zepar and Death has sent me in place for him as a favor." He continued on, seemingly unbothered by Harry's blank stare.

"Alastair had you well hidden." The demon, now known as Zepar, said. "You wouldn't believe how many demons I had to torture to finally get the information that I wanted." Seeing that he wasn't getting anywhere with the near catatonic wizard before him, he summoned a chair to sit upon before casually saying, "Your Winchesters have stirred up quite a bit of trouble."

Harry still didn't move, his eyes never wavering from its ever vacant stare at the vast darkness before him. Was it a trick to get him to give in? For them to break him irreversibly that he would no longer be able to recognize even himself?

"They've gotten themselves involved with some bitch of a demon and I'll say this, she's on her way of having little Sammy on a leash and collar." Harry's dull eyes flickered at the news and he turned his eyes to focus on the demon who was smirking. "I knew that would get your attention."

"Y-you're lying." He managed to croak out. It had been years since he had last spoken instead of screamed and it nearly tore at his vocal cords to even get those two words out.

"Not on a leash and collar, but she's slowly worming her way in getting his trust." Zepar said. "Deanie boy isn't too happy about that." Harry willed his voice to work. He was far from trusting the demon's words but it was the first he'd ever heard news of Dean and Sam.

"W-why are you t-telling me this?" He asked, his dry lips cracking and blood began spilling from it. It didn't bother him in the slightest.

"Because it amuses me." Was the careless answer. "Life in hell can be such a bore at times." Harry stayed silent, wary. "You are not what I had imagined."

"S-sorry to disappoint." Harry muttered, not really meaning it. The demon laughed, sweeping a hand through his wavy black hair. He stood up again, towering over Harry with his six foot frame.

"I'm not." He responded, caressing the small wizard's thin face. "You're a whole lot cuter than I thought you'd be. Almost makes me want to take Death's favor a whole lot more seriously."

"What are you talking-" Harry's question was cut off then when he started coughing, blood dripped from his mouth from the dried blood that was caught in his throat and he began gagging when it wouldn't come up. It hurt and he felt tears welling up from the force of his coughs. It wasn't the first time that his tears had fallen.

After some time, his coughing slowed and he slumped in his chains, exhausted. The demon was still there and was watching him with an interested look in its face.

"You're a strong one for such a tiny thing." Zepar observed. "Broken, yet not broken. Fearful yet not. You are a very interesting individual but that's to be expected from the one that holds the title of the Master of Death." Master of Death, Harry hadn't been addressed by that title since his talk with Dumbledore on the platform of life and death.

"W-what are you talking about?"

"Death isn't too happy with your situation, believe it or not. You, Harry Potter, who have escaped the grasped of death many times before, holder of the title 'Master of Death,' was always destined to be under the jurisdiction of Death when you died and he's highly upset that you've sold your soul." Zepar ran a finger down Harry's face. "It's just your luck that he's taken an interest in you but then again, so have I."

Harry didn't know what to make of this conversation. His muddled mind couldn't process the situation that he was currently in.

"I don't understand." He mumbled. The hooks were tearing his skin where they held him and he forced himself to straighten himself. He had tried to free himself of the chains years before and had even torn himself off of it but there was no place to escape to and he'd only find himself impaled by more hooks seconds later. Sharper and deadlier than the first.

"It's simple," the demon said, leaning in close to his face. "I'm here to free you." And with that, he placed a hand behind Harry's greasy mop of hair and drew him in a deep kiss; licking away the blood that still clung within the confines of his mouth along the way. He drew away after a while, a trail of saliva tinged with blood still connecting them. "Thanks for the meal." He said, licking his lips. "Well, I'm off to search for your contract. Just wait little Master." He whispered teasingly in his ear before he swept away; leaving Harry alone with only the screams of other tortured souls to keep him company.

He leant back on his chains, letting the pain draw him back into reality of his situation. He let out a humorless chuckle. How the years have twisted him if the only thing he could rely on was the very thing that threatened to break him, body and soul.

The demon's words circled around his mind, but he didn't allow himself to hope. Why should he believe the words of a demon who had appeared and disappeared within what seemed like seconds? Dull eyes looked upwards into the darkness, it was better for him if he forgot the matter altogether if he didn't want to lose his mind wondering about it.

Hearing the familiar footsteps of Alastair coming for their daily session, he closed his eyes. It was pretty soon after that he was soon bathed in his own blood, the mysterious demon's words forgotten.

…

A raw broken scream came spilling out of Harry's mouth as he twisted and turned on the hooks that held him bound to one spot. He could feel his blood running down his body from the various wounds but he didn't care, tugging and pulling until his skin was literally tugged off by the chains. Gritting his teeth, he jerked his shoulder away from the hook until his bone gave way and he collapsed onto the bloody floor, his body broken and damaged from his very own actions.

Forty more years have passed now and he could barely even remember who he once was. His mind was fracturing and he couldn't recall the reason why he was resisting for so long. Bloody hands entangled themselves into his hair as he screamed out at the lost.

But what had he lost? He wondered, tugging at his hair. He, himself, wasn't sure but he knew it was something important; something vital that had kept him fighting the urge to say yes for so long to Alastair. He curled up into a ball, rocking back and forth as his dulled eyes stared into the endless darkness that he had been surrounded in for a century now.

His bones were cracking and twisting back into place but he hardly felt the pain, lost in the sea of oblivion. He eyed the hooks warily, waiting for them to spring forth to sink into his skin but it didn't. It laid where it had been dropped, covered in Harry's blood. He didn't know how long he stayed curled up on the floor but he slowly straightened out when his scar began to prickle in the familiar sensation that announced that Voldemort was coming.

Clenching his hands into fists, he slowly got unsteadily to his feet; swaying slightly. He wasn't used to standing on his own after nearly a century of chains binding him. With most of his memories practically gone now and nothing left to ground him, the only emotion he seemed to be able to invoke now was pure unadulterated rage towards the dark wizard that he still had clear memories of. Of the man who murdered his parents and so much more people. Of the man who still haunted him to this very day.

Dull eyes now flashed with anger and all that mattered at that very moment was to tear apart the man who ruined his life. Harry Potter was gone and all that was left was a shell that thirsted for the blood of his enemy. The very enemy that was now in front of him with a smirk on his snakelike face.

"Seems like little Potter escaped his leash." Voldemort said tauntingly, eyeing the blood-splattered wizard standing in front of him. He didn't seem all too worried that Harry was no longer in chains.

Harry didn't give any sign that he had heard the man; didn't stop the rage that was rising within him. It had been ages since he had felt anything other than pain and he welcomed it. Watching the dark wizard approach him with sure and confident steps, his muscles tensed and he readied himself to defend.

There were no chains holding him back and if he was in his right state of mind, he would be questioning why that would be. But his rationality was gone, washed away from the emotion that was fueling him. And so he waited. Waited as the dark wizard came closer and closer and when the other was well within his reach, he pounced.

Years of being chained had weakened him but the all too powerful craze that had overtaken his mind made up for it. Voldemort's red eyes widen in surprise at his actions but the man quickly recovered and batted him away like he was a mere doll. He landed in a small heap but he was quick to get up to his feet.

"Seems like the kitten finally gotten some claws." Voldemort said; an evil, chilling laugh emerging from his mouth. He summoned a knife to him, holding the sharp instrument delicately. "Shall I declaw you?"

Harry snarled, his eyes losing its almond shape and for a moment it flashed with a power that he should no longer possess. Startled, Voldemort's defenses were lowered which allowed Harry to launch his deadly assault. It almost seemed animalistic in the way he attacked, fingers drawn back into claws and his teeth bared threateningly.

Aiming for the exposed skin, he managed to catch the taller wizard by the throat and dug his nails in. Voldemort gave a strangled yell and with the knife in hand, he stabbed it into Harry's side but he hung on. Feeling the warm sensation of blood dripping out of the wound from Voldemort's neck, he strengthened his hold and felt a sadistic glee well up inside him at the pain that littered the man's features.

Still clutching into the other's neck, he yanked his hand backwards with strength he didn't know he had and the disturbing sound of skin and muscle tearing filled the air. He was tossed to the side and he landed a few feet away from the dark wizard, his hand still holding part of the other's ripped out throat.

He watched as the other wizard gurgled and the blood began pouring out of the wound and out of his mouth. His hands clasped over the wound, choking and gasping for breath. He would live; that was no doubt but the healing process wasn't quick. Watching as his longtime enemy literally choking from his own blood, the rage within Harry was quickly extinguished and pure disgust and horror replaced it.

With a strangled yell, he tossed away the piece of the dark wizard's neck he still held in his hand and scooted away from it. What had he done? A little bit of clarity was once again accessible and his stomach gave a lurch as he recalled exactly what had he done. His body shuddered at his bloodthirsty actions and he curled into himself.

He had a brief lapse of insanity. It wasn't uncommon but this was the first time he was free from his chains. He could hear his heart beating and the pulse resounded in his ears. It had finally happened. He, even for a moment, had lost himself and his actions terrified him more than anything else in the world.

Hazel-green eyes and puppy dog eyes flashed in his mind then but he could no longer remember who the owners of those eyes were. Despite that fact, he clung frantically to the image; afraid that any moment now that they too would disappear and he would once again be consumed by the fury and wrath that had been planted within him.

"Well, well. What has happened here?" A voice that tugged at Harry's memory spoke up from behind him but he didn't move. "Really, little Master, what have you done?" That's what he would like to know as well. Warm broad hands took a hold of his shoulders and he was lifted by strong arms.

Frightened emerald green eyes gazed up at the other and found a familiar face that he had met years before but the name escaped him.

"Who are you?"

"I'm hurt, little Master." The demon said, drawing Harry close to its red armored chest. "I'm Zepar." He flashed him a rather seductive smile but it was lost on the small wizard. "I apologize. It had taken longer than I thought it would to find and destroy the contract. They had it very well hidden."

Harry didn't say anything, laying limp in the arms of the demon.

"Hey, did you hear me? You're free."

Free? Harry was never going to be free. It felt like he was more bound than he had ever been before in his whole existence. In fact, did he even exist anymore? Who and where was Harry Potter? He didn't know anymore.

"Little Master," Zepar crooned softly into his ear. "Harry." He called, carrying his cargo carefully out of the torture sector of hell. Voldemort laid forgotten.

Harry didn't know where the demon was carrying him nor could he even summon the energy to care. He was exhausted and tired of fighting. Of everything. He closed his eyes and only opened them when he felt Zepar put him down, steadying him when it seemed like his legs weren't going to support him. Before them was what looked like a small warp hole.

"It's time for you to go back now." The demon said, cupping the small wizard's face into the palm of his clawed hands. Seeing him come closer, Harry tried to pull his face away but the grip tightened and before he could stop it, he was drawn into a kiss. A persistent tongue tried to penetrate his mouth but he stubbornly kept it closed, shoving the other away. "After freeing you from your contract, this is the thanks I get?"

Harry didn't answer, instead busying himself on wiping his mouth.

"You wound me, little Master." Zepar said, gliding in closer into Harry's personal space. He laid a hand on the small wizard's chest. "But that's what I like about you. I hope I'll be seeing you around."

And with that, Zepar pushed Harry through the hole and watched as the little wizard was swallowed by the darkness. Once he was gone, Zepar touched his lips lightly and let out a small chuckle.

"Well, looks like things will be a little more interesting from now on."

…

**Somewhere in America**

Waking up with a start, Dean gasped for breath as his hand grasped the area over his heart. A surge of hope bloomed within his chest.

"Harry."

…

End of chapter. =D

**A/N**: So… yeah… Harry broke and didn't break at the same time. He's strong but after a hundred years of torture, it'll be hard for anyone to have a sane mind but yeah, tell me what you think. Hopefully it was realistic but most important of all, Harry's out of hell! I felt bad for torturing him so. :'(

Thank a bunches for all the reviews and comments I've received. =] And thanks for reading!

**The First Seal:** "The first seal shall be broken when a righteous man sheds blood in Hell".


	18. Interlude

Interlude

**Hogwarts**

The Potter brat whole purpose in life was to drive him into an early grave he was sure. It was a conspiracy against his very being and he could feel his black hair slowly turning to white from the stress that the pest of a brat was causing him. Just how the Gryffindor golden boy kept stumbling into problem after problem was astonishing. The boy was simply a magnet for trouble; just like his father.

He scowled at the thought of James Potter and the induced reminder of the Marauders. He banished the thought with a flick of a finger. Maybe not too much like his father, he amended. As much as he grudgingly didn't want to admit it, the boy was tolerable but he was an imbecile.

Who had asked him to decide to play the hero and sell his soul to demons just for _hunters_ of all people? He had always thought that Potter had a death wish but to go to the extent of forever damning his soul to hell, it was mind numbing and Severus practically bristled from anger at the thought; never minding the fact that he was in class and the students were nearly shaking in fear from his mood.

He had left it up to the dragon tamer Weasley to inform the rest of the red headed family; choosing to retreat into his quarters until Minerva had came hissing and threatening him through the portrait to come and teach his class. The older witch didn't know. He couldn't bring himself to bear the news and so here he was, glowering and vibrating in anger while his students were attempting to make a potion.

When Potter first informed him of the fate that awaited the brat in six months, he didn't know what to think. What to feel. But he knew he was far from elated. Denial had played a huge part during the six months. Hours and endless days of research. Hope and sheer conviction that he would be able to find a way to save Potter was what he thrived on to get him through the months and together with Potter's Weasley, they had compiled mountains of notes that were utterly useless in the end.

Severus should've known better than to hope for the best. It never did him much good.

A cauldron on his left exploded then, interrupting his thoughts and bringing him back to reality. It seemed like once again an inept fool had failed to follow the proper instructions.

"All of you, get out!" He yelled, snarling from his anger and watched in satisfaction as his classroom was practically emptied within seconds. Growling, he sent a locking charm towards his door behind the last student; ensuring that he'll be left alone.

Waving his wand over the botched potion, his classroom was once again spotless and he slid his wand back into his holster. He gripped the sides of his desk, trying to calm himself but it was of no use.

A waving picture drew his attention and the rage within him bubbled over at the sight. Grabbing the picture that showed his own face scowling at a cheerfully waving Potter, he threw it hard across the room and watched it smash into the wall. The frame shattered from the impact and glass littered the ground while the picture itself remained unharmed.

He never liked that picture anyway. The stubborn brat had continuously replaced it whenever he threw it away until he finally gave in and left it alone. He was pleased to find even with such a photo on his desk, the students were still intimidated by his presence.

Growling low in his throat, the pleased feeling was nowhere to be found at the moment and he began to stalk out of his classroom, pausing before he reached the door. Turning abruptly from his original destination, he glided over to where he had thrown the picture frame and gently picked up the photo.

The anger finally rescinded and the grief that he had tried to deny surged forth from within him. He leaned back against the wall, sighing.

He had failed to protect the boy. The very boy that he had grown reluctantly fond of and who never seemed to understand the meaning of self-preservation. He clenched his fist around the photo and sunk down to the floor.

Heroes, he thought with a sneer while his eyes reflected the sorrow he felt, they were always such selfish creatures.

…

**A/N**: Small interlude of Severus and how he's coping. Poor Severus, huh? =[ No Charlie, sorry but I thought Severus should have the spotlight. =]

But anyways, with that, onto the main story!


	19. 17

Chapter Seventeen

He couldn't breathe.

Gasping for air, a pair of eyes snapped open only to see a void of darkness all around him. A surge of fear and panic raced through him and he lashed out, surprised when his arms immediately bashed against a wooden surface that was all around him. He formed his hands into fists and he began banging them against the top interior but it didn't budge. A strangled cry forced past his lips and he began to claw at the wood instead while his legs kicked out. Was this another form of torture?

His lungs were about ready to burst from the lack of oxygen and for the first time in many years, he could feel his magic give a pulse of life within his core. Welling up inside of him, it enveloped his entire body and he disappeared with a loud pop. It felt like he was being squeezed through a small tube and he gritted his teeth as he reappeared with another pop beside a grave marker.

Out in the open air, he greedily sucked in the air that his lungs dreadfully needed but he was soon reduced to coughing when the dryness in his throat became too intolerable. One hand gripping his throat and the other steadying him on the ground, his body shook from the force of the coughs he couldn't stop. Tears welled up in his eyes and he was left gasping for the air he lost when he managed to regain control over his body.

Wary green eyes scanned their surrounding and they widened when they took in the dead grass and trees all around that he was in the center of. Biting his bottom lip, he faintly recalled the red armored demon and how the demon had pushed him through the warp hole.

_It's time for you to go back now_. The demon, Zepar, had said. The memory coming back to him, he couldn't help the disbelief that ran through him. Was he truly back?

His magic gave a pulse from within him and he clenched a hand over his heart. He had to be. From the time he had arrived to hell, his magic core had been obviously absent and he felt like a part of him had been left behind when he died. But now, kneeling by his supposed grave, he felt almost complete. A feeling he thought he would never be able to feel ever again.

Now if only his memory would come back to him as well. Where was he? _Who was he?___He didn't know. He didn't remember. Couldn't remember. The panic that had subsided now came back with a vengeance. Feeling a whimper threatening to escape his throat, he bit down on his tongue hard to clamp it down and the taste of his own blood began to fill his mouth. The pain calmed him down slightly and he spat the excess blood out in disgust. One would think that after a century, he'd be used to the taste of his blood.

Speaking of blood, he glanced down at his hand and shivered when he recalled the rage that he felt when he ripped out Voldemort's throat. It was a feeling that had consumed him mind and soul and for that brief moment, he had lost all sanity and had become something that he had been desperate to never become; bloodthirsty with the desire to cause pain and despair that had been inflicted on him for so long.

He didn't know how long he stayed kneeling near the grave that he knew that was his but eventually with the support of his grave marker, he stood up on unsteady legs. He had to leave. Needed to actually, if he wanted to find the answers to his questions.

Rubbing a hand against his forehead, he froze upon the contact of his lightning bolt scar. _The Boy-Who-Lived_. His mind whispered. No, he clenched his hands. He didn't want that title. He never wanted that title. _Harry._

'I'm just Harry.' A younger version of his voice echoed through his mind next and unbiddenly, a small but sad smile appeared on his face. No, he was never 'just Harry' either but he was just all too glad that he remembered something about himself. It was something to ground himself with and reconfirm him of his existence; that he had existed before the fury and rage.

Walking onwards, which was more like stumbling, his mind and soul cried out for something that he simply could not recall. That once he found it, he'd finally feel _whole_ again. He curled his arms around himself and tried to suppress the shaking that was slowly creeping into his limbs. Was it from fear? From sorrow? He didn't know anymore. The emotions that threatened to overwhelm him were barely held at bay and they churned like a wild ocean that wanted to devour his mind and stricken him with the tragedy he'd been through.

He was momentarily distracted when his skin began to tingle in delight from the warm gentle rays of the sun and the tension that was running through him slightly eased. The sun. The light. They were things that Harry had believed that he would never be able to see again and had resigned himself to that fact but here he was, standing under the sun and sky once more. And even though the light stung at his eyes, he refused to avert them; wanting to take in the scenery around him.

There were no screams of agony. No cries for mercy and redemption and he basked in the silence.

Stumbling out of the alcove that he was apparently been buried in, he found a small gas station and he headed towards it. He tapped against the glass window on the door and tried to peer into the small store when no one answered. No one was there. He frowned, contemplating on what he should do. His throat was horribly dry and he desperately wanted to rinse out the taste of blood that was still in his mouth.

_Alohomora_. He thought faintly, placing his hand over the doorknob and heard a small click as the door unlocked. Pushing it open slowly, he walked inside and immediately headed over to the beverage section where he opened a water bottle and gulped down the content. Thirst finally quenched, he stumbled out of the store and out onto the road.

Alone and with most of his memory gone, he felt extremely vulnerable and without the need his beckoning, his magic rose up to respond to his distress. It twisted and weaved around his body in a complicated fashion and it draped around him securely, ensuring that no one would be able to find him if he didn't want them to.

With that done, he continued onwards. It was the only thing he could do. With no destination in mind and no memory to guide him, he allowed his instincts to take over and chose the path that seemed to call out to him.

A mile down the road, his green eyes laid upon a familiar black car and felt memories that he thought were gone stir from somewhere deep within him. He knew that car. He was sure of it but that didn't mean he wasn't wary.

_Safe._ His magic whispered to him as he got closer to the car. _Home_. He thought it was odd that he associated the word home with a car but it felt right and he sank down onto his knees to lean his head against the bumper. He closed his eyes. For some reason his heart ache and the feeling of something missing felt more pronounced more than ever. Getting lost in his emotions, he didn't know when he dozed off.

…

"I'm telling you, Sammy. Harry's alive."

"Dean, no. Someone's taken his body and we need to find out who." Harry stirred from his sleep from the voices and he tensed as he heard them coming closer. "It was just a dream. I know you want Harry back. I do, too but Harry isn't alive."

"Then how do you explain that his body is now gone? Huh?" The first voice demanded.

"I told you already-"

Harry didn't hear the rest of what was said. Panic was now setting in again and his state of mind was reverted back to his time in hell. Voices and footsteps. Hooks and knives. Blood, pain, torture that never seemed to end. It was a neverending cycle.

No! He cried out in his mind. He was out. He was no longer in hell.

"H-Harry?"

The call of his name effectively drew him back into reality and his frightened emerald green eyes latched onto two men with stunned expressions on their faces.

"Harry?" The shorter man repeated, his familiar hazel-green eyes seeming to plea to him that it was true.

Was this what he had lost? Familiar hazel-green and puppy-dog eyes. They were the ones that he had clung onto to give him strength when he had lost everything else but ironically right now, at this very moment, he couldn't summon up the strength to stand up to face them so he remained where he was kneeling and stared up at them.

"Harry." Hazel-green eyes said again, making a move to head over to Harry but the taller one stopped him by grabbing his arm.

"It could be a trap." He cautioned but the other shook him off. "It might not be Harry."

"It is." He argued, his voice confident. It amazed Harry that someone could be so sure while Harry himself wasn't. After all those years, was he even Harry anymore? He wasn't sure.

So lost in his thoughts, he didn't hear the other approaching and he felt himself recoiling at the unexpected touch to his shoulder. He looked up to see hurt hazel-green eyes and his heart gave a lurch from the guilt that welled up inside him. His heart screamed at him for putting that look in the other's eyes and wanting to erase the hurt reflecting from his eyes, he reached out his arms tentatively and shakily cupped the other's face gently.

"Dean," he managed to whisper. He hadn't meant to say that but once he had uttered the name, he knew without a doubt that this man was what he had been missing. "Dean." He murmured again and had to fight back the urge to flinch when the older man pulled him into a hug. Tentatively wrapping his arms around the other's waist, he basked in the warmth and the security that Dean offered. "I'm back."

…

It felt like another lifetime that he was once Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived.

Lying on top of a car with a humming Tribbles beside him in Bobby's junkyard, Harry stared up at the starry night sky as he let his mind wander. After a series of tests that Bobby and Sam had wanted to put him through, it was confirmed that he was undeniably human and that Harry was indeed Harry. Questions were asked on how he came back but even he wasn't sure on how to explain it so he kept quiet. The only explanation that he could provide was about his body's non-decomposing condition and that was due to his magic keeping it preserved.

With more questions than answers, they were all left a little wary and that left Sam and Bobby to hit the books in hopes of finding the answers. Harry somehow doubted that they'd have much luck.

He had been back on earth for about a day and a half now and his memories from before were slowly returning as if it was a movie.

And that was the problem. He was remembering but it didn't feel like it was _his_. He had changed far too much and that was to be expected. No one would be able to remain the same after going to hell and returning. He closed his eyes, feeling the tainted magic caressing him but he no longer felt irritated by it. He supposed it was because his magic had finally adjusted to the environment but the more troubling thought was that maybe it was because he was now just as tainted as the magic here.

Shortly after reuniting with Dean and Sam, he had come to the realization that he had been using magic without the aid of a wand and hadn't even felt strained. He wasn't sure what that meant but it was just another question added into the pile of many questions that had yet to be answered.

"Harry?" Dean's voice called out. He knew that the older man was going to come after him. This was the first time since their reuniting that Harry had managed to get some time alone to himself to work out his troubling thoughts. He hadn't been able to make much progress.

He understood Dean's desire to remain by his side; afraid that this may all be a dream and so he didn't complain. Not yet anyways. After all, he needed the man's presence just as much as Dean needed his.

"I'm here." He called out, lifting a hand and waving it to attract attention to where he was.

"What are these?" Sam asked, revealing that he had come along with his brother. He gestured to the balls of light that encircled the perimeter of the car Harry was on and the young wizard could see that the two hunters were wary of the display of something that they were raised to consider unnatural.

"Orbs of light." Harry answered, sitting up and dangling his legs off the side. He held out a hand for one to float onto. "It was too dark." He explained, controlling the impulse to jerk away when Dean took a hold of his other hand. He knew that the man wasn't going to hurt him but a hundred years of expecting pain by another's hand wasn't going to be erased within a day. He blew it back to its original spot. "Their job is to provide light but I can get rid of them if they bother you." He really didn't want to be surrounded by the darkness but he also didn't want them to be uncomfortable either.

"Nah, it's fine." Dean said, grinning at him but Harry could see that there was a hint of concern beneath it. Both Winchesters seemed to be uneasy but they didn't seem to be able to gather the courage to bring up the topic that was bothering them.

Harry remained silent, letting them take their time while he scrutinized Sam who was standing in front of him. He could sense a hint of darkness that was growing within the youngest Winchester and it worried him greatly. What had caused it?

He frowned but decided against bringing up that question at the moment. He'll have to wait for another time when he was alone with Sam but until then, he'll have to watch over the youngest Winchester to make sure that the darkness did not grow any bigger.

"So what's been going on around here?" Harry asked, seeing that they weren't going to speak up any time soon. He didn't have to wait long for them to inform him of all the trouble that the Winchesters had run into during his ten months in hell. From Ruby the demon (_bitch of a demon_, his mind recalled someone say long ago) to Bella who stole the fixed Colt from under their noses. It seemed like they were in a predicable but at least they now had a knife that can kill demons to replace the stolen gun.

Harry listened to it all quietly, filing away the vital information while laughing accordingly at the humorous situations that Sam and Dean had found themselves in even though his heart wasn't into it. Their little light mood was broken when Harry yawned, making them realize that it was getting pretty late into the night.

"We should be getting to bed." Dean said, sharing a silent conversation with Sam with his eyes that didn't escape Harry's attention. Sam looked close to arguing but in the end he conceded, turning his head away to look into the far distance with a small frustrated look on his face.

While this was all occurring, Harry pretended not to notice; staring up at the stars above him. He had a slight idea what was on their minds but he wasn't going to be the one to bring it up. If it was up to him, it would never be brought up.

His time in hell wasn't something that can be easily shared.

…

Morning found Harry perched on top of the roof as he watched the sun begin to rise for a new day. The rays of the sun danced across his skin and he pulled his knees toward his chest to lay his head upon his arms, his black locks of hair falling into his eyes.

His mind drifted off towards Dean. Despite his efforts on not flinching, it seemed that he couldn't hide his discomfort from Dean and the man had gone to sleep on the couch last night instead of sharing a bed with him. With the guilt eating at him along with nightmares, sleep was hard to come by and he had spent most of the night contemplating his situation.

He couldn't carry on like this. He clenched his hands into fists, frustrated with himself. He was only causing Sam and Dean to worry unnecessarily if he continued on like this. He would not let this defeat him.

Drawing upon his Gryffindor bravery, he took a deep breath and raised his head high. As long as he existed, he would continue to forge onwards. He wasn't one to let his fears rule him and like all the other obstacles that he had overcome, he was sure that this was something that he would be able to triumph over as well. It would take one step at a time but he was determined to be able to do so.

With that last thought, he climbed down off the roof and made his way into the kitchen. Collecting the items that he would need to make a hearty breakfast, he set the pan on the stove and began preparing a meal for the other three occupants to eat when they wake up.

"What smells so good?" Dean asked about an hour later as Harry set the last plate on the table. His eyes lit up at the feast before him and he sat down immediately to pile a fresh pile of pancakes onto a plate. Harry watched him with a glimmer of amusement twinkling in his eyes when Dean let out a moan of appreciation at his first mouthful. "This is great." He exclaimed before taking another bite.

Observing the older man, the love that Harry felt for the older man overwhelmed him and he wondered why he had ever flinched at Dean's touch. He trusted Dean explicitly. Walking over to the occupied hunter, Harry bent down slightly and gave the man a small kiss on the cheek.

"W-what?" Dean said, stopping his fork midway to his mouth to look over at Harry with a surprised look on his face. A small blush was slowly making its way up from Dean's neck towards his cheeks and Harry offered him a small smile.

"Just felt like it." Was his offered explanation but it was enough. A spark Harry hadn't noticed that had been extinguished in the older man's eyes rekindled and he dropped his fork in favor of pulling Harry down into his lap, hugging him. It seemed that Dean had been more than a little affected than he had let on. "I'm sorry." Harry murmured.

"There's nothing you need to apologize for." Dean said gruffly into his hair. "If anything, I'm sorry for not being able to find a way to get you out."

"You're an idiot if you think you're at fault for that." He rebuffed, cupping Dean's face in the palm of his hands.

"I'm willing to be an idiot if it's for you." The older man said before making a face. "God, that was cheesy." Harry laughed.

"That isn't something new." Leaning down, he caught Dean's lips with his own; effectively stopping the man from responding. Harry knew that he was a long way from recovering but little by little, he would get there. He was sure of it and when he faltered, he was sure that Sam and Dean would be there to help him consciously and unconsciously.

"Oh, come on. Not at the kitchen table." He heard Sam remark when the hunter entered the kitchen and felt rather than heard Dean chuckle against his lips. He made to pull back but the older man had maneuvered his hand behind Harry's head to keep it in place. They only broke apart when Bobby made his appearance.

"Break it up, you horny idjits."

…

It was much later when the Winchesters and Harry had left Bobby's and were in the Impala when Sam finally asked the dreaded question that the small wizard had hoped they wouldn't bring up.

"How much do you remember about hell?"

_Everything_. Harry thought grimly but when he opened his mouth, his answer was the complete opposite of the truth.

"Nothing really. It's all just a big blank." He lied, a trace of guilt running through him for deceiving them. "It was like taking a really long nap."

"But you were acting-" Sam trailed off, not sure how to finish his sentence.

"I was dead for ten months." He said. "I'm entitled on feeling a bit disoriented." He wasn't quite sure they bought the explanation but they didn't call him on it.

"You really don't remember anything?" Dean asked, peering over at Harry for a brief second before turning his eyes back onto the road. Harry focused on not giving himself away.

"No, not a thing." He answered.

He was such a liar.

…

**A/N**: Well, I hope this chapter wasn't too disappointing. =/ It's safe to say that yes, Harry is determined to get over the ordeal he has had to face but it isn't going to be as easy as he thinks it will be. He'll have relapses and his road in life is not going to be all rainbows and … other cute fuzzy things. =P After all, since when has his life ever been easy? But yeah, this is just the beginning of his return so we'll be seeing more of how he'll be coping in future chapters.

To clarify for the previous chapter, Harry has been in Hell for 100 years which means it has been 10 months on the topside and the timeline according to Supernatural, he came back in September. =D Hope that helps and sorry for the confusion. =X

Also, I wanted to say thank you for your reviews and comments. =D And I hope you all continue to enjoy the story.

To those that disagree with the way I have chosen to break the first seal, sorry but hey, it was never specified on how they had to go about shedding blood to break the seal so I just interpreted it my way. You don't have to agree with it but that's just how it is.

To wrap up this A/N, I wanted to thank you all for reading! =D


	20. 18

Chapter Eighteen

The guilt warred within Samuel Winchester as he watched the despondent form of his brother picking at his food. With Harry locking himself in the bathroom so he'd be able to speak to Severus privately, it left the two brothers alone to dwell on their thoughts and allowed Dean to drop the cheerful air that he had recently adopted in front of Harry to try to cast the illusion that everything was all right. Sam didn't think it was working.

Ever since his resurrection, Harry's behavior had changed. He was withdrawn at times, getting lost in his thoughts and despite his attempts to hide it, both the Winchester brothers noticed that he would flinch when he was touched unexpected. It made Sam wonder if Harry was indeed telling the truth when he had said that he remembered nothing from his time in Hell but Dean had stopped him from pushing the younger man for answers and so he had dropped it. For now.

Still, it didn't stop him from speculating and it tore at him that Harry felt like he couldn't share his burdens with them. That he couldn't confide in them and he knew that if that thought was tearing him apart on the insides, then Dean must be feeling a whole lot worse. His brother loved Harry, truly and sincerely, and to be unable to do anything for him, it was probably agonizing.

And when he got to the root of the problem, there was no one to blame but himself. Wasn't it, after all, his fault that Harry was sent to Hell in the first place? Because of his naïve nature, wasn't he the one who left Jake alive and with the opportunity to retaliate and kill him? What use was he when he couldn't even save himself? What kind of friend and brother was he? Sam did not know anymore.

He, who was always being saved by Dean and now even Harry, was useless when it came to the important matters and when push came to shove, it seemed that all he could accomplish in the end is bring pain and misery to those that he cared for. Observing his brother, the despair that Dean was desperately trying to conceal and failing was practically emitting from his brother and couldn't help thinking that _he_ was the one who put it there.

If only he was stronger.

Sam sighed. Maybe Ruby was right. With the level that he was at now, he wouldn't be able to protect anyone.

'_You want to protect Dean, don't you?_' She had asked him once when they were alone. '_If you want to protect anyone, you need to wise up, Sam. Your kind, gentle nature isn't going to be doing you any favors in this war. After all, wasn't it because of your carelessness that ended with your friend going to Hell?'_

"What's got you in such a brooding mood?" He snapped out of his reverie at the sound of Dean's voice.

"W-what?" He turned to face his brother who was wearing a carefree grin on his face. It was for his sake, he knew, and that fact only made him feel worse.

"Is it the time of the month?" Dean asked jokingly, sitting back against his seat.

"No." Sam answered reflexively until what his brother said finally sunk in. "_No!_" He repeated more vehemently, making Dean chuckle from amusement.

"So what's the problem? You look like your pet dog died. Well, if you had a pet dog." Sam hesitated, unsure whether to bring up the subject or not.

"Do you think Harry's lying?" He asked and Dean stopped chuckling, his face turning serious.

"About what?"

"About not remembering." Sam glanced over at the bathroom door before turning his attention back towards Dean.

"I don't know." Dean admitted, running a hand through his short hair. "But come on, a man goes to Hell for ten months and suddenly gets brought back? Even if he doesn't remember, it ain't going to be easy on him, Sammy."

"You're right but he's hiding something."

"I know that." Sam could hear the frustration in Dean's tone. "I've been trying to get him to tell me but he always clams up as soon as I bring up the subject. I don't know what to do." Sam was a little taken back at the helplessness that was laced within his brother's words and swallowed. It probably wasn't the best time to bring this up. Dean had enough troubles on his mind already without him adding more to it.

"It's going to be okay." He reassured his brother. One of them had to stay positive. "Harry's strong and with us here, we'll figure something out." Dean appeared to be thinking about his words before nodding.

"Yeah, you're right." He said gruffly before picking up his hamburger and taking a huge bite out of it.

Turning his attention back to his laptop, Sam decided right then and there that he was going to do whatever it takes to get stronger so that the mistakes of the past would never be repeated. He would be the one to protect Dean and Harry next time.

…

**Meanwhile with Harry**

Thinking back on it, there were probably a hundred better ways that he could've informed Severus of his revival than the way he went about it but he guess that it was too late to redo it. It would be too much of a hassle to get a time-turner and he definitely didn't want to go through informing the man a second time around of his resurrection.

Saying, "I'm back!" to the rather sour and quick to anger potions master was probably not the best idea he's had in a while and he watched as Severus's grouchy mood was replaced with a stunned silence before it was quickly followed by anger. His usually pale pallor had gone even paler and red spots soon appeared on his cheeks. It was a sure sign that the man was about to erupt and of course, he couldn't just leave it there and had to further add on with a cheeky grin, "Did you miss me?"

He knew that Severus was not going to right out believe him immediately what with the Polyjuice Potion floating around and felt a block of ice starting to form in the pit of his stomach when the older wizard became eerily calm, composing himself as if he was facing a potential enemy. Harry didn't blame him. If he found himself in Severus's position, he would've came to the same conclusion.

He was just a tad bit relieved that he wasn't in front of the man at the moment. From the glint sparkling in Severus's obsidian eyes, he'd probably be hexed into the next year or better yet, his spleens would probably be used in some exotic potion that the older wizard had wanted to try out but didn't have the sufficient supplies for.

It had taken a total of half an hour to fully convince the man that he was indeed Harry Potter and back from the dead and another thirty minutes where he was yelled at by Severus for his selfish and irresponsible behavior. By the time he was finished, Harry's ears were ringing and he was glad that he had placed a silencing charm on the bathroom door.

The question of how he came back was predictably brought up and he had hesitated to tell the man the truth. If he admitted to knowing, then he would be questioned on the things that he had to go through down there and he couldn't bear to spill his secrets out just yet. He wasn't ready and when it came down to the raw truth, he wasn't ready to get back to the life he had left behind when he died either.

The fear that the reality he was now living in was false terrified him, making him wary to reach out because of the possibility that he might wake up any second now only to find Alastair and face his sadistic tendencies once more. After seeing the Winchesters, Severus, and even Bobby, he didn't think his mind could take it if he discovered that this had all been a dream.

Lying to Severus had been a whole lot harder compared to Dean and Sam who were willing to drop it but that wasn't too surprising. Severus's whole life had been based on gathering vital information to get the advantage over the enemy so, of course the man wasn't going to simply let Harry go after he said that he didn't remember. He was slightly worried that the older wizard might try to cast Legilimens on him through the mirror but he knew better. The man didn't want to break Harry's trust in him and that made him feel all the more guilty for lying to him.

"You're hiding something, Potter." Severus said, stating a fact rather than asking a question. It was always a good idea to go through the direct approach with Harry than the roundabout way. Harry opened his mouth to deny it but somehow an apology came out instead.

"I'm sorry." He murmured, his eyes downcast.

"Your apologies are getting old." The older wizard said snippily before he sighed. "I'm sure you haven't told your hunters either, have you?" There was no need for an answer for Severus already knew the answer. "You are an arrogant fool."

"I can't help it. The trait runs in the family." Harry said, a small smile playing on his lips. After a century of torture, he was relieved to find that talking to Severus stilled calmed him. It made him feel that maybe everything will actually be okay in the end.

"Don't remind me." The older man said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Sometimes I almost forget that I have a Potter running amok in my life." It was odd perhaps that they were able to talk so calmly now instead of shedding tears or become overwhelmed with emotions but there was always time for that later when they were both alone. That was just how it worked. It was Severus's way to keep his pride intact.

Able to finally look at Severus clearly, he noted with regret that Severus's complexion had worsened over the last ten months. The man's usual pale complexion had become even paler if possible and it looked like he hadn't had a good meal in days. Most likely months. Harry felt the guilt churning in his stomach. He had put the man through a lot and for him to add on further with his problems, he couldn't do it.

"You look horrible." He pointed out instead. He could handle this alone. He was going to be fine.

"And you're still the impertinent brat that you've always been." Was the retort.

"You love me."

"I _hate_ you."

"But I love you." Harry stated matter of factly.

"Shut up, Potter." He could see a small flush appear on the man's cheeks and he grinned. For the moment he truly felt like he was himself again and his connection to this reality strengthened just a bit more. Count on his favorite potions master to be able to do such a thing.

There was a knock on the door before Dean's voice floated through the wood, "Harry?"

Severus scowled while Harry realized that he had been in the bathroom for quite some time now.

"I'll be right out!" He responded only to realize a second later that he had cast a silencing spell on his side. Unfortunately this didn't escape the older wizard's keen eyes.

"Still as absentminded as ever, I see." The man said and Harry blushed from embarrassment. "And you're still traveling with those hunters. Haven't you learned the first time around?" It was blatantly clear that Severus did not approve.

"It was my choice." He answered, not wanting to get into this argument. "I should really go now. I'll try to contact you again some time soon." He promised. Severus's composure wavered for a bit and behind his built up walls, Harry could've sworn that he looked almost fatherly before it was hidden once more. "Are the barriers still in place?"

"Do you really think I would be here instead of there if it wasn't?" There was no doubt in Harry's mind that Severus would've apparated to where he was if he could. He had to find out what or rather who was holding the barrier in place.

"No," he replied. "I'll break it somehow. Until then, take care of yourself." He told the older wizard. "Or else Pomfrey will stick you to one of her hospital beds and force feed you herself."

"That woman's already tried and failed. Like a Hufflepuff could ever outsmart a Slytherin." Harry couldn't help but laugh at the remark.

"But Gryffindors can."

"They're just a self-sacrificial bunch with air between their ears." Severus sneered.

"Maybe." He agreed. He went to close the communication but Severus's next words stopped him.

"Be careful." The older wizard said, the concern palpable in his tone and Harry smiled.

"I'll do my best." He promised before saying the words that had been occupying his mind since seeing Severus's face again. "I've missed you."

There was a short pause before, "I miss you as well, brat."

The mirror turned dark.

…

It had been a week after the talk with Severus and Harry couldn't help but get the feeling that someone was watching them. The hair on the back of his neck stood on ends and the dark energy that was swirling within Sam seemed to be increasing more and more by the day. It was quite worrisome. Just what exactly was going on?

He and Sam were currently waiting in the car while Dean made a quick stop at a diner in hopes of getting him some pie. In some ways, Harry thought it was an endearing trait but sometimes, while watching the man eat the pie, he really believed the saying 'love makes you blind.' Sorry to say, the man could be a pig at times but a loveable one nonetheless, he thought bemusedly.

He was quickly snapped out of his thoughts however when he felt eyes on him. His years spent with the public either gawking or staring at him had made him much more sensitive and he discretely glanced around his surroundings while he sent his magic out to investigate the potential stalker.

_Demon_. His magic warned him and he forced himself not to tense at the information. What was a demon doing following them around? Whatever the reason, Harry doubted that it was a good one.

Sam, who was sitting in the front seat, didn't seem to notice. In fact, he looked to be exhausted and had simply said that it was due to not getting enough sleep when Harry had asked him what was wrong. He seriously wondered if that was the only reason but he couldn't bring himself to push Sam for answers when he himself was keeping things to himself as well. Everything was such a mess.

The demon was still watching and making a quick decision, he disappeared with a pop and reappeared behind their demon stalker. The tainted magic swirled around him and it swarmed around his hand as he grabbed the demon by its throat and slammed it against the brick wall. It was in the body of a young blonde woman and she would've been considered attractive if it wasn't for the darkness that practically spilled out from every single pore of her body.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Harry demanded, his magic and wild magic increasing his strength to keep it from wiggling free from his grasps.

"If you'd loosen your grip, I'll tell you." It said, trying to tug his hand off but he wouldn't budge.

"You can still talk." He replied. His magic crackled around him from his emotions and his senses screamed that the demon in front of him was bad news.

"Harry!" Sam called out from behind him and sounds of running footsteps can be heard heading towards him. "What are you-" Sam's sentence broke off when he caught sight of who Harry was pining against the wall. "Ruby?"

"You know her?" Harry asked, his eyes flickering towards Sam.

"Yeah, she's a friend." The small wizard twitched at the description of their relationship. "Harry, let her go." Sam insisted, pulling him away roughly from the demon. Caught by surprise, he loosened his grip and the freed demon rubbed its neck, its eyes sparkling with interest as it gazed at him. In response, he narrowed his green eyes at it while Sam asked, "What are you doing here, Ruby?"

"I wanted to meet the Harry Potter you've always been talking about." It answered, trying to step closer towards Harry but found that it couldn't when his magic gave off a warning pulse. He wasn't going to be fooled by her act. "So you managed to get out of Hell, how did you do it?"

"I don't know." He answered. He didn't like how its eyes were glinting in sheer hunger at him. Peering closely at the darkness of the demon's, it felt almost familiar and with a jolt, he glanced back at Sam. The youngest Winchester had the same feel inside of him and he felt the rage within him grow at the realization.

"What the blood hell did you do?" He questioned angrily. He, himself, unsure whether he was directing it towards the demon or Sam but it didn't matter as long as he got an answer. Slipping his wand into his hand, he pointed it at Ruby; a curse on the tip of his tongue.

"Harry!" Sam cried out, grasping his wand hand and tugging it so that the wand was no longer aimed at the demon. "Ruby, maybe you should go." Without another word, she vanished and that left Harry to direct all his anger towards Sam.

"What did you do?" Harry asked, his eyes flashing. Unbidden, the wild magic swirled around him; eager and awaiting for his commands.

"What are you talking about?"

"Why do you have some of her essence inside of you?" The shock was clear on Sam's face.

"W-what?"

"What are you kids doing over here?" Dean interrupted, looking at the two with a grin on his face. Harry didn't know what to tell him. He had his suspicions but it wasn't enough. Plus, he didn't want to cause any arguments to be spurred between the two brothers.

"We thought we saw something." Sam answered smoothly, flashing Harry a discrete pleading look on his face. A frown threatened to emerge on his face and he shoved it back. He would stay silent for now but it didn't mean that he was going to lie either. "It turned out to be a cat."

After Dean teased them, they head back to the Impala but before that, Harry tugged on Sam's sleeve jacket to gain his attention.

"I don't know what you're doing, Sam, but I do know that you're playing with fire. That demon is dangerous."

"She's been a great help." Sam defended but Harry shook his head.

"But to who exactly." He murmured and for some reason, Sam hesitated to answer with what Harry assumed was, 'us.'

…

"All right, just what is going on between you and Sam?" Dean asked Harry two days later, the tense air between Sam and Harry finally getting to him. The two of them were sitting on a wooden fence while Sam was fast asleep in the car. They were taking a break from driving for the night.

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, trying to appear nonchalant.

"Don't," the older man said, a look of pure frustration on his face. "Don't pretend you don't know. You've been hiding a lot of things but Sam's my brother." Harry was beginning to think that his guilt was going to have a permanent residence in his heart.

"I," he paused, contemplating on how to go about it. "I honestly don't know yet." He continued and when it looked like Dean was about to raise an objection, he turned to face the man. "I'm not sure on anything at the moment so I don't want to say anything yet. I don't want to rush into a conclusion without more information." He let out a squeak of surprise when an arm wrapped around him and pulled him flush against the older man's side.

"I feel useless." Dean admitted.

"You are _not_ useless." Harry protested, gripping Dean's jacket with his hands. "Dean…" He trailed off. He could feel the despair radiating off of the hunter and his heart clenched. "You're anything but useless. You're the reason why I…" _was able to hold out as long as I did._ He stopped, he couldn't say it.

"The reason why you what?" Dean asked. "Dammit Harry. Why can't you talk to me?"

"I'm sorry." Dean was getting frustrated, he knew but he didn't know what to do anymore. He could feel his resolution wavering and he was about to open his mouth to confess everything when a strange energy suddenly filled the air. He stiffened noticeably in Dean's embrace in which alerted the older hunter. "There's something here." He whispered and without question, Dean reached for where he had hidden his gun; his trust in Harry as strong as ever.

"What is it?" Dean asked but Harry shook his head.

"I don't know." The energy was unlike anything he's ever come across. "All I know is, is that it's not a demon."

By this time, they had both gotten off the fence to scan their surroundings better. They were a bit a ways from the Impala and there was a brief flash of worry for Sam but it seemed that the worry he felt was unfounded as the energy seemed intent on heading towards them. Harry held his wand at the ready, poised to attack if it indeed proved to be a threat.

"There is no need for violence." A voice spoke up from behind them and they whirled around, gun and wand aimed at the figure. What they found came as a shock to them both.

It was a man… decked out in a full suit attire. It was an odd sight to behold.

"Who the hell are you?" Dean asked while Harry studied the man before them. Unlike demons, the man was practically radiating in light and the tainted magic hissed at him but he either couldn't sense its dislike or didn't care.

"Castiel." Harry and Dean shared a look of bewilderment and then turned incredulous looks at the man. "I am an angel of the lord."

"You're kidding me." The Winchester said, disbelief coloring his tone. Harry himself was unsure what to make of this situation. "There's no such thing."

"I assure you, I speak the truth."

"And why should we believe you?" Harry spoke up, regarding the 'angel' with a critical look.

"I believe Dean should know. I was the one who sent him the dream regarding your return." He answered, peering at the hunter with serious eyes. "How else did you think that you had found out about Harry Potter's resurrection?"

"You sent me that? And why would you do such a thing?"

"I do so out of good faith." Was the answer. "And because I need your help." It was directed towards both Harry and Dean.

"What help?" Harry asked. They had yet relaxed their grip on the weapons, wariness lining their bodies.

"God's work." Castiel replied. "He has plans for you two."

Harry was almost beginning to think that a trouble-free life was impossible for them.

…

**A/N:** Done with another chapter! =D So I was a day late from my own self-proposed update date but at least I finished. This chapter was actually really difficult to write for some reason. Especially attempting to write in Sam's mindset! For some reason, I find it hard to write from his views and thought points BUT I tried my best. =D

I haven't had a good opportunity to reread this over so I'm really hoping that it turned out all right. . I'm pretty busy gathering my stuff and moving to my second home for the school year and since we haven't set up the internet there yet, I decided to just post it now. But yeah, I'm hoping that I'll be able to post the next chapter or so by Friday… hopefully. =]

To **luv-blonde-bunny**: I think… you found one answer to one of the questions you asked me. =] About Castiel. Hopefully it seemed natural…ish. Haha.

Thank you for everyone who has read and continued to follow along the story. =D And I hope you all continue to enjoy the story, so…

Bye for now and thanks for reading!


	21. 19

Chapter Nineteen

"You _hexed _an angel?" Sam asked incredulously, staring at Harry with wide eyes when they recalled the event from last night.

"Well, Dean shot him." Harry pointed out, refusing to be the only one Sam was gazing at as if he had committed a huge crime. Or sin, to be more appropriate. After Castiel's announcement that God had work in stored for them, Harry had thrown a curse at him just as Dean had pulled the trigger. To say the least, the bullet didn't have much of an effect but at least the spell did manage to singe the angel's coat.

After that, the rest of the event passed in a daze and Castiel left only after he had promised that he'd be returning. It didn't seem to matter that the two preferred that he wouldn't. Sad to say, in these situations, their opinion never really mattered.

"I can't believe you two." Sam said. "You tried to maim an angel."

"It wasn't an angel." Dean argued. "There's no such thing. Don't you think somewhere out there after all these years, a hunter would've seen one, huh?"

"Yeah, you two just did." The youngest Winchester rebuked which made Dean pause for a second before he shook his head, obviously frustrated.

"There's no way."

Harry didn't know what to make of this situation. Unlike Dean, he didn't want to immediately dismiss the idea of angels but he didn't know just how much he believed in it as well. All he knew was that there is indeed a possibility that Castiel was telling the truth and if he was, they were going to have to learn as much information on him as possible.

"Whether he is or isn't, we should still research about them regardless." Research, it was a dreaded word but a necessary action. Dean didn't look too happy but he agreed in the end.

"All right." He said. "Let's head to Bobby's."

…

Unfortunately for them, their reason to visit Bobby changed drastically when they had to deal with what the old hunter had called, "Rise of the Witnesses." Twenty hunters were dead, killed by the very people that they were unable to save and apparently, this was only the beginning.

The beginning of the Apocalypse.

The news just kept getting worse and worse. Harry sighed, rubbing his forehead. If it wasn't a Dark Lord bent on destruction and ruling the world, it was an Apocalypse threatening to destroy all of humanity. To sum it up, his life sucked.

A sudden change in the surrounding energies alerted him of the newly arrived presence in the junkyard but he didn't bother turning around.

"What do you want now?" He asked.

"I've come to speak with you." Castiel answered dutifully if not a bit monotonously. "I had sensed Dean's presence and had hoped you'd be here." Seeing Harry's confused look, he tried to explain further. "I… cannot feel your presence as I would others."

Could not sense? When he thought back to the day of his resurrection, Harry's magic had responded to his distress and had casted an Untraceable spell on him. He hadn't realized that it was still in effect, not to mention that it worked against an angel.

"Why do you want to talk to just me? What about Dean?" After all, didn't the angel say that he needed both of their help?

"Dean does not believe." Was the reply. "He is unwilling to listen."

"And I am?"

"Yes." There was no doubt in his tone and his surety irritated Harry, especially since he was right.

"What did you want to talk about then?" Harry asked, finally looking over at the holy being. The other night had been a mass of confusion but now that he had a more clear and focused mind, he was willing to hear the proclaimed angel out.

"You did an excellent job with the witnesses." Castiel commented.

"You knew about it?"

"I was made aware."

"You could've helped." Harry pointed out, upset. "A lot of people died."

"You, of all people, should know the results from war." That stung.

"But that doesn't mean that I would sit back and let people die." He argued. He was reminded of all the deaths and sorrow that occurred during the war against Voldemort and clenched his hands into fists. With the Apocalypse, he knew that it was going to be worse. "If you could've, you should've saved them."

"Casualties are expected to happen in times of war." Harry bit back an angry growl but he did narrow his eyes at the angel. All the hype of angels being guardians and watching over people to protect them was apparently a lie. If all angels had Castiel's mentality, he'd rather watch out for himself than rely on them. "It was regrettable that they died but we have larger concerns to deal with."

"Like what?" A thought struck him. "The Apocalypse?" Castiel nodded.

"The Rising of the Witnesses is one of the 66 seals which are being broken by Lilith."

"So she's the one that rose them?" Again, the angel nodded. "Why is she breaking them?" Harry had a feeling that he wouldn't like the answer.

"These seals are like locks on a door." A feeling of dread overcame Harry.

"And what gets let out when the last one is broken?"

"Lucifer walks free."

He knew that he wouldn't like the answer.

"So, that's why you're here." He stated. He didn't need Castiel to confirm it. He sighed. "So, God's work, huh? Is it to stop the seals from being broken?"

"That is one of them."

"What else is there?"

"Just focus on the seals for now. That should be your only concern." With those parting words, the angel vanished from Harry's sight and he could've sworn that the flapping of wings. His eyes slid from the spot where Castiel was previously standing to where Dean was hiding within the shadows. He had arrived some time during their conversation and it was most likely that Castiel had ignored his presence rather than Dean managing to hide from the angel.

"So what do you think about that?" Harry asked as Dean made his way over to where the young wizard was sitting.

"Sounds like some crazy dreamt up sci-fi novel." Was the answer. "Next someone's going to tell me unicorns exist." Harry looked down at the older man with an amused look in his eyes.

"They do exist." He grinned when Dean shot him an incredulous look.

"You're kidding me."

"Nope," he said. "Where I went to school, we had unicorns living in the forest among other things."

"Among other things, huh?" Dean leaned back against the car. "So it must be easy for you to accept this idea of angels and God?"

"Not really." He answered, laying down on the roof of the car with his legs dangling off the side. "But if there're demons, there're probably angels." Darkness and light. Two sides of a coin. Harry recalled the darkness that dwelled within Ruby and the light that flowed through Castiel. He frowned. Mentioning Ruby, he wondered about Sam's relationship with her.

Harry was startled when the car rocked from beneath him but relaxed when a couple of seconds later, he was pulled into Dean's arms who was now lying next to him. He could feel the tension and confusion that was emitting from Dean and lifted his hands to clutch at the man's jacket, leaning his head against the other's chest. He was worried about Sam but Dean, who was in front of him now, needed him as well.

"Is it that hard for you to believe it?" For a moment, Harry thought that Dean wouldn't answer but after a few minutes, Dean let out a frustrated sigh.

"I don't know. Angels are supposed to be these really nice, fluffy winged guardians. Not dicks."

"Disappointed?" Harry asked. "It's no use thinking of what they should be but rather what we should do now. All we have is the reality in front of us." Dean tightened his grip on Harry.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." He agreed. "It's just… my mom used to tell me angels were looking over us and to find out that it's true…" He trailed off.

"You just never figured that they'd be complete dicks?" Dean chuckled lightly at Harry's words.

"Yeah." They descended into silence, soaking in the comfort that the other offered. Harry was close to falling asleep when Dean spoke up once more. "Harry?"

"Hmm?" He murmured drowsily.

"Are you hiding something from me?" Harry could sense the awkwardness Dean must be feeling for asking such a question and the hurt underneath the awkwardness.

"Why?" He asked. He meant to deny it but what came out next was completely off topic. "Why do you like me, Dean? Weren't you into women? Doesn't it bother you that not only am I a man, I'm also a wizard?" He didn't know what possessed him to ask Dean these questions but once he uttered them, he knew that the answer would determine his next step.

"What brought this on? If you really didn't-,"

"Please, I want to know." Harry said, cutting the older man off. He lifted his head to look into Dean's eyes to show just how serious he was.

"Geez," Dean said, relaying his reluctance on this moment of chick flickdom that was suddenly forced upon him. "I don't know why you're asking me now but look, I was wary of your magic at first but you proved that your magic isn't what makes a monster. You care about people, you save them even when it puts your life at risk. You are far more caring than most people out there in the world." Dean broke off, looking a bit embarrassed at his admission. "It's true that I've always aimed for chicks. I'm not interested in men and I'll never be interested in men but you're different."

"I tried to deny it but whenever you were in the room, my eyes would follow you and I'd find that I rather be with you than anyone else. I didn't want to fall for you," he admitted and Harry felt his heart lurch painfully from inside his chest. "But I definitely don't regret it." Dean's eyes suddenly looked accusingly at Harry. "You made me gay for you and only you."

A small stunned silence followed after the older man's claim before Harry began to shake with laughter. He couldn't help it. Dean was truly adorable and it felt like Harry had fallen in love with the other all over again.

"Hey," Dean said, letting go of Harry to sit up. His face was red from embarrassment and he was clearly sulking. "Here I am sharing my heartfelt feelings for you and you laugh?" Dean was pouting now, unsure and uncertain of what Harry could possibly be thinking at the confession he had just made. Struggling to sit up as well, Harry tried to choke back his laughter and reached out his hands to pull Dean's face down to his own.

"I love you, Dean. Forever." He said, smiling brightly before kissing the other.

…

Harry laid wide awake in the arms of Dean Winchester as the older hunter slept. It was nearing two o' clock in the morning but he couldn't bring himself to sleep. Nightmares continued to plague him and the fear of the darkness swallowing him prevented him from succumbing to the slumber that beckoned him.

Hearing Sam's blanket being pushed to the side, he turned his head to watch Sam get up and biting his lip from uncertainty, he casted a minor muffling spell over Dean to prevent him from waking before he spoke up.

"Where are you going, Sam?" Startled, Sam turned around quickly towards Harry who was sitting up carefully to not jostle Dean from his dream.

"No where." Sam answered, his voice holding a hint of nervousness that Harry was able to pick up on. "I was just going to the bathroom. Did I wake you?" Harry knew that that was a lie but he didn't call on it just yet. Sam was his friend and calling on it would just drive the young Winchester away.

"No, I was never asleep." Harry confessed. "Must've been the nap I took earlier. I can't fall asleep now." Or wouldn't, if he was honest.

"Oh," Sam said, standing awkwardly next to his bed.

"Didn't you need to use the bathroom?" Harry asked after a few seconds had passed.

"Oh right. I did."

Harry watched Sam walk to the bathroom and when the door shut with a small click, he sighed. The darkness within Sam was growing larger and he still didn't know what the cause of it was. Or rather, he knew where it was coming from but he didn't know _how_ it was happening.

It was like an infestation. That bitch of a demon's essence was practically thriving within Sam and Harry didn't know what to do about it. He briefly wondered if it was like a sexual transmitted disease and then felt ill when he considered the thought that Sam might be sexual active with that thing.

He couldn't find it within himself to even begin to believe that Ruby held any good intentions towards Sam. Being the savior of the Wizarding World, he had come into contact with many people who hid their conniving agendas behind a trustworthy smile and Ruby had the exact same feel. She held a gleam in her eye that spoke of her hunger for power and status and Harry only wished that Sam could see it.

He heard the toilet flush and seconds later, Sam emerged. He could tell that the other was hoping that he had gone to sleep and almost visibly deflated when he saw that Harry was still in the same position he was in when Sam had gone to the bathroom. His movements showed his reluctance and he slowly slid back into his bed. The distance between them were growing larger by the day and that made Harry feel incredibly lonely along with the helplessness from being unable to prevent it from happening.

Harry stayed sitting for the next two hours, pondering while keeping a close eye on Sam. He had succeeded on keeping Sam away from Ruby for the night but he knew he couldn't stop him forever by these methods. No, the only way was to expose Ruby's true intentions before Sam did something that he would regret.

Harry prayed that it wasn't already too late.

…

**A/N**: . Pretty short chapter. I'll post a longer chapter next time. I've been pretty busy moving my stuff to the new place and then school starts on Thursday, so my posting won't be as fast as it used to be.

Also, I wanted to thank Lilly-Rose268, Mickey, luv-blonde-bunny, lasthope, Deancass, Gurgie, hjamesp15, sw, HPxDW for commenting for the previous chapters. =D Sorry that I didn't thank you earlier but… it's better late than never? I'm really happy to hear you like the story and if I forgot anyone else, I apologize BUT nevertheless, thanks to all for reading!

Since this chapter was pretty short, I'll leave a little except from the next chapter I'm in the process of writing: =]

"_Dean, stop!" Harry cried out, intervening between the two brothers as he reflected the fist that was coming towards Sam. _

…

"_You should show a little more respect, boy. If I wanted to, I can destroy you." _

_Harry narrowed his emerald green eyes at the dark angel and with a fluid movement that neither angels nor hunters expected, he had Gryffindor's sword pressed against Uriel's neck. _

"_You can go ahead and try." _

...

_Harry took a deep breath before turning to the two brothers with a serious look in his eyes. "I lied to you. I remember everything." _


	22. 20

Chapter Twenty

Harry was going to go out of his mind with worry.

The first night that he managed to get a good night's rest and not only was Sam gone but Dean was no where to be found as well. He had tried to reaching them by their cell phones but it proved to be to no avail as the call was not connecting and that only made Harry worry all the more.

His magic was unable to locate them and he was running low on options on how to locate the wayward Winchesters. He rubbed his forehead, contemplating on placing a tracking charm on them when he finds them. It'll help them all in the long run and Harry might be able to keep a better eye on Sam if he did but he couldn't help his conscious yelling at him for the potential invasion of privacy.

He hated that he had morals sometimes.

Sensing a disturbance in the air, Harry grabbed a hold of his wand and pointed it at the intruder just as he appeared in the room.

"Watch what you're pointing at me, mud monkey." The not-so-polite intruder said in a haughty tone. It reminded Harry briefly of Draco from the younger years and he couldn't help but narrow his eyes at the dark man, not bothering to hide the look of distain from his features.

"Then you shouldn't enter people's rooms without knocking." He replied, not lowering his wand in the slightest much to the irritation of the other. "And here I thought angels knew manners." And the dark man was an angel.

There was no doubt about it but while Castiel was brimming with warmth, the one before him was emitting a cold and dispassionate air. Harry immediately knew that this man was not going to be an ally. The look in his eyes while he stared down at Harry reflected the dislike he felt and it reminded Harry of all the times his uncle and aunt looked down at him, screaming at him for being a freak and how worthless he was.

It was a fact that they were not going to get along.

"You dare talk to me that way?"

"I'm just pointing out an observation." Harry responded, trying to appear calm while his muscles tensed and he readied himself to defend against the angel if the other proved to be volatile. On how well he would be able to defend against an angel, he had no idea but he was willing to give it a shot. "Did you come here for something or are you just here for kicks?"

American lingo. Dean would be so proud of him.

"You should show some respect, boy." The other practically hissed threateningly but Harry was far from intimidated by the angel.

"Showing you respect will only inflate your already oversized ego." He retorted. The magic around him was nearly crackling from the tension within the room. For a second, the angel seemed prepared to attack Harry but he settled on sneering at him, saying without words that it wasn't worth his time.

"Lowly insects like you should learn their places." Tired of the insults and petty name calling, Harry tried to get back on track.

"Who are you and what do you want?"

"Who I am doesn't concern you." Harry was seriously getting annoyed at the other's holier than thou attitude. He paused in his thinking. The other _was_ holier than him but he still hated the angel's demeanor. As Dean would say, the angel was being a total grade-A dick. "All you need to be concern about the seal that your kind is trying to break."

"What? Where?" He asked, bewildered. "And why aren't you stopping it if you know about it?"

"Never mind that. It is _your_ job to stop that wizard. That is my only message." Was the answer before he further added, "Also, here's my advice to you. If you don't want your precious Winchester to be destroyed, I suggest you stop his affiliations with that demon."

"I don't need you to tell me that." Harry said. "I'm not going to let that demon destroy Sam." An arrogant and mocking smile appeared on the angel's face.

"Who said anything about the demon destroying him?" He leant in close to Harry's face. "If he continues on the path he's going down, I'll personally obliterate him with pleasure." Gritting his teeth, Harry lashed out and threw a punch at the darker man's face; unconcerned about the repercussions of his actions.

"You hurt Sam and I'll kill you."

Instead of getting angry like Harry thought he would, all the other did was throw his head back and laugh.

"You think your pathetic little threats are going to scare me? You should think again." His eyes glittered almost maliciously as he focused on Harry. "But enough of this child's play, you have that seal to prevent from breaking. I suggest you to hurry."

"And where is it?" Harry resisted the urge to flinch backwards when the dark angel raised his hand up towards his head.

"Don't fail." He said with a ridiculing tone and before Harry knew it, he was no longer in the motel room but in an alleyway in an entirely different town he was previously in. Immediately upon arrival, his senses were overtaken by the darkness and evil that seemed to be lingering heavily in the air and it nearly caused him to lose his breath.

Was that due to the seal?

If its presence was already overbearing even before the seal broke, Harry hated to think just how suffocating it would be if it did. He didn't think he wanted to meet whatever was waiting behind the seal.

Tendrils of darkness swept around him, teasingly brushing against him and he shivered at the reminder of his time spent in hell. Unlike that time though, he had his magic now and it pulsed warningly; pushing away the tendrils that were licking at him hungrily.

"Enough of this." He muttered to himself, shoving the pain-filled memories to the back of his mind. He'd deal with it later. Much later. For now, he had to concentrate on where the seal was.

Throwing out his magical senses, he probed the area only to find that the source seemed to be on the opposite side on where he was now. He gritted his teeth. He wouldn't put it past the angel for doing it on purpose.

Apparating at the moment was out of the question. He didn't doubt it for a second that the darkness emitting from the seal wouldn't hesitate to rip him apart if he did. Left with the only option, Harry stuck close to the shadows as he raced off towards the seal; hoping that by the time he got there it wouldn't be too late.

The sun was already beginning to set, making him pick up his already hurried pace. He found it a bit ironic that while the people in this town were getting ready for bed, he was rushing to save their town from being potential obliterated from hell's minions. It was at this time that it really hit home that he was living in a far different world than muggles and most wizards alike.

He guessed it was really just the life of one Harry Potter.

Pure malevolent energy pulsed up ahead of him; stronger than before and he hoped that he wasn't too late. From what he could make out, it was a fairly new house; recently built but reeking of foul energy that made Harry want to gag.

Slowing down to a light jog once he had reached the house, he rounded around to the back and picked the lock to the backdoor in fear of being detected if he used magic. The door swung open silently and he cautiously entered, cloaking himself within the shadows.

He made his way up the stairs and peered up into the opening where it led up to the attic. The seal was up there, he was sure. It gave out the strongest waves of maliciousness and was growing even stronger by the second. Climbing the small ladder, he carefully peeked his head just barely into the attic and immediately spotted the wizard in the act of breaking the seal. He wasn't sure why he was surprised of who it was but he was.

"_Expelliarmus_!" He shouted just as Lestrange was about to cut his upper arm into the huge array that he had drawn onto the attic's floor. He managed to catch the dark wizard by surprise and the spell connected to the other's back, sending him flying in one direction and the knife flying in the other.

"Potter!" He cried out in anger, snarling at the sight of Harry. "So it was true that you were out of the pit."

"What can I say? It's a unique trait. I just can't seem to stay dead." Harry said, eyeing the other cautiously for any sudden movement. He couldn't help but tense when Lestrange's attitude changed, anger changing into amusement.

"Yes. You do seem to have that annoying quality but tell me, do you realize what you have _done, _Little Potter?" At the look of Harry's blank expression, he continued on. "You may have escaped hell, but you did more than that."

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, a sinking feeling beginning to form in the pit of his stomach.

"The seals." Lestrange answered with a mocking smile. "You didn't think all of a sudden the seals could be broken, did you? No, you set this all in motion when you got your little hands bloody in hell." Harry felt cold.

It couldn't be, he thought and said it aloud for the dark wizard to hear.

"It could." The older wizard's eyes glittered with malice. "It was written long ago that the first seal shall be broken when a righteous man sheds blood in hell and guess what? You did it. Bravo, Potter. I always knew you had it in you."

"You're lying!" Harry denied, tightening his grip on his wand. Aiming, he sent a curse flying towards Lestrange just as the wizard disapparated and reappeared behind him. From developed instincts, he twisted his body around and dodged the swipe that the other aimed at him; managing to put a little distance between them just in time. Red jets of magic came flying at him and he threw himself to the side, rolling two times before getting his feet underneath him.

"_Stupfy!_" He shouted, aiming his wand at the dark wizard only to have it knocked aside by the other with a wave of his hand. Harry gritted his teeth. The wild magic in the air was practically begging him to make use of it but he refused, fearful of what would happen if he ever did so.

He brushed it aside. He had to focus solely on Lestrange but in order for him to do so, the seal itself had to go and with a moment of recklessness, he sent a blasting curse towards it; shattering where it laid and hopefully thwarting the dark wizard's attempt.

The feeling of accomplishment didn't last long as Lestrange sent a curse towards him, sending him flying across the attic. He smacked into the wall and felt his left arm scream in pain as it took the blunt force of the impact. Hearing the tall-tell sign of a popping sound, he shoved away from the wall and blocked Lestrange's punch with the same left arm that was throbbing in agony.

"You may have managed to stop me from breaking this seal but believe this, you won't be able to stop them all." The glint of madness twinkled in Lestrange's eyes as he peered down at Harry. "And when that final seal breaks, the greatest Lord of them all will emerge and lead us to supremacy."

"I won't let that happen." Lifting up his knee, Harry managed to land a hit on Lestrange and twisted away from the other; casting the shielding spell just in time to block the curse that the dark wizard had let loose. It smashed into his shield and the offensive and defensive spells sizzled and crackled from the combined magic.

Before his shield broke, Harry threw himself to the side and watched as his shield collapsed and the angry red jets of magic came spiraling through where he just was standing, colliding into the far wall and leaving scorched marks in its wake.

He didn't have time to recover when Lestrange bodily tackled him, sending them both crashing through the attic window and falling quickly towards the hard ground underneath. Through the air, the two wizards twisted against one another; Lestrange determined to hang onto Harry while Harry was trying to kick the other off.

All this took a matter of seconds and once Harry had managed to detangle himself from the hands of the other, he apparated; saving himself from a potentially deadly meeting with the ground. Lestrange was not so lucky.

Harry appeared several feet away from the house and saw the unmoving body of Lestrange; one of the dark wizard's arms twisted at an odd angle.

Harry winced at the sharp stinging of pain that was coming from various parts of his body and felt a warm texture running slowly down his back and arms. When he was sent flying through the window, the sharp shards of glass had dragged themselves across his skin; leaving deep to moderate cuts on his body.

Police sirens could be heard coming closer and biting his bottom lip, Harry contemplated on what to do. With the police just seconds from appearing onto the scene, he called forth his magic and with a pop, he vanished; heading back towards the motel he was in before he was hijacked by the angel.

Unknown to him, if he had stayed there for just a little while longer, he would've witnessed Lestrange open his eyes and apparated just as the first police car pulled to a stop in front of the wrecked house.

…

Harry landed rather ungracefully inside the motel room, his legs giving out from underneath him and he crumbled to the floor. He didn't have long to focus on his own troubles when he heard Dean and Sam arguing with one another just a few feet away from him.

Today just wasn't his day, it seemed.

The sound of a fist connecting to skin startled him and his head snapped up to see Sam stumble back, his cheek quickly blossoming into a deep red.

"Dean!" Harry cried out, struggling to get to his feet. The two brothers ignored him in favor of each other.

"You satisfied?"

"Dean, stop!" Harry cried out, intervening between the two Winchesters as he deflected the fist that was coming towards Sam the second time. "What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?" He asked, standing in front of Sam defensively.

"Get out of the way, Harry." Dean said, his teeth clenched from anger.

"No! Not if you're going to punch Sam again." Was the reply. "You're brothers."

"Yeah, and if I didn't know him, I would wanna hunt him." Harry glanced back at Sam to see the hurt and shock shimmering in his eyes but then slowly nodded, accepting the words thrown at him by his brother.

"You don't mean that." Harry said, bewildered. What had gone on with them while he was gone?

"Don't I?" Dean asked. "Why don't you tell Harry here what you've been doing behind our backs? Hm? Or are you too ashamed to tell him?" Instead of answering, Sam looked down; unable to make eye contact with Harry. "If what you're doing isn't such a bad thing, then why can't you say it? Why did you lie to me?" It didn't look like Sam was going to answer anytime soon. "Why would the angels tell me to stop you?"

"What?" Sam asked, surprised.

"Cas said that if I don't stop you, he will. What do you think that means, huh?" The brothers shared a long silent look and Harry could feel their bond slowly starting to crack under all the pressure and events that were starting to accumulate.

Harry's throat felt dry as he stood helpless inbetween the two. He couldn't believe that this was happening. His mouth opened and closed but no sound came out. He didn't know what to say to make this better.

A change in the air alerted Harry of their rather unwanted visitors at the moment and he whirled around just in time to see the same dark angel that was there before along with Castiel by his side.

"What are you doing here?" Harry asked, glaring at the dark angel.

"We came to congratulate you on a job well done, of course." Came the irritating response from the angel he was coming to hate.

"What job?" Dean asked while Harry said simultaneously.

"I don't need praise from the likes of you." He replied, brushing the words away. "If that's all you want, you can leave."

"It seems that our company isn't wanted." The dark angel stated, but rather than leaving, he sat down in the chair. "We're not interrupting anything, are we?"

"Who are they?" Sam asked and despite their earlier disagreement, it was heartening to see Dean step a little bit in front of Sam as if to protect him from their holy guests.

"That's Castiel," Dean said, pointing towards the one in the trench coat. "As for Chuckles over there, I have no clue."

"This is Uriel. My partner." Castiel spoke up. "You really did do well in preventing the seal from being broken."

Lestrange's words resurfaced to the front of his mind and he felt a pit forming in the bottom of his stomach. He wanted to ask but not when Uriel was in the room. He couldn't stand the smug arsehole.

"One of many, right?" He asked and it was then that Sam and Dean realized what kind of state Harry was in.

"Oh my god," Sam said, checking over his wounds. "Are you all right?" Harry waved him off, sending the two Winchesters a look that not only said not right now but that he was fine. It seemed that they got the message since they backed off a bit although they weren't too happy about it.

"Yes." Castiel answered casually, not ruffled in the slightest. He observed Harry. "You are injured." Walking over, he lifted a hand towards Harry and suddenly, warmth filled him; his wounds closing and leaving smoothed skin behind.

"T-thanks." Harry said, uncertain and a bit perturbed. Fawkes, he was used to. As well as potions and spells but the touch of an angel, it was a sensation that was out of this world and when he thought about it, it was probably the case since angels technically were not from earth.

"You guys are really angels?" Sam asked, his face full of wonder and admiration. Harry frowned. Uriel did not deserve that expression. He peered up curiously at Castiel; he figured the trench coat wearing angel did though. His wounds were gone and the pain that was plaguing him since his confrontation with Lestrange was gone. "Oh wow, I mean. It's great to meet you." He reached out a hand to Castiel only to be rebuffed by Uriel.

"Don't try to touch us, mud monkey." Uriel spat angrily from his spot. "Or should I say, you're lower than a mud monkey since you've been reduced to being a demon's pet?"

Sam recoiled from Castiel as if he was shot and Dean and Harry immediately was on the defense while Castiel shot his partner a reproving look, clearly unhappy with his conduct.

"That is enough." He said but Uriel looked far from being chastised.

"Touching you specifically would only just dirty us anyway." Harry said, aiming his comment solely at the darker man. He brushed a comforting hand against Sam's arm and it induced a small smile before it quickly faded away.

"What did you say?" Uriel asked, his aura flashing dangerously.

"For a being that claims he's superior, are you trying to tell me that you're hard of hearing?" He didn't care that he was angering a holy being that could probably smite him if he ever possessed the desire to do so. No one insulted his friends and especially not the people he had come to see as his family.

"You should learn to watch your mouth, boy. If I wanted to, I can destroy you along with your two hunters."

Harry narrowed his emerald green eyes at the threat and with a fluid motion that caught both angels and hunters by surprise, he had Gryffindor's sword pressed against Uriel's neck.

"You can go ahead and try."

Uriel chuckled, unbothered by the sword pressed against his neck.

"Tell me, did you show such audacity like this during your time in hell?"

"I wouldn't know." Harry tried to deny, unwilling to divulge the truth just yet but it seemed Uriel was determined to bring it out all into the open whether Harry wanted to or not. In fact, it seemed he drew pleasure from it.

"Don't lie, Potter. You remember everything, don't you? It's impossible to forget a hundred years of torture." Behind him, Sam and Dean had grown pale at the revelation and that angered him more than anything. He didn't want them to find out this way.

"Shut up!" He said, unwittingly pressing the sword harder against the other's neck; drawing a thin line of blood. In response, Uriel raised his hand; gathering energy in the center of it as a retaliation but Harry refused to back down. He was not afraid.

"Stop." Castiel demanded, his grip firm on the wrist that held the sword while his other was clasped tightly onto Uriel's shoulder. "You are out of line, Uriel." He looked down at Harry with a glimmer of regret in his eyes. "I apologize."

Harry turned furious eyes onto him.

"Don't." He responded. "Don't apologize for him." He lowered his arm and let the oddly pulsing Gryffindor's sword vanish. He was almost afraid to turn back to face the Winchester brothers. "Leave."

Castiel did not appear upset at his command and nodded. "We'll take our leave." And with that, the two angels left; leaving behind a shambled mess. Silence filled the room.

"Is it true?" Dean finally asked, his voice projecting his despair and disbelief. "You remember everything?" Just moments before the two brothers were on opposite ends but faced with this new information revealed by Uriel, they stood together; previous issue pushed aside for now.

There was no way out of it now. Harry took a deep breath to gather the courage to turn to face Sam and Dean, his face grim.

"Yes, I lied to you. I remember everything."

…

**A/N**: I'm finally done with this chapter! I just got around typing up the remainder of the chapter today instead of reading my textbook. . Horrible of me but it's been a while since I posted a chapter, so I postponed my reality for a day.

Umm… yeah. So I wrote it but wanting to just go ahead and post it, I haven't reread it yet so if there are any errors or anything, I'll be sure to edit it soon when I get the chance. If you see any mistakes and feel like it, please point it out to me and I'll be sure to correct it. =D

For the previous chapter:

**hjamesp15**: Well, here's the chapter. =D Hope you weren't disappoint on how it went. Thanks for reading!

**unknown**: Thanks for the comment and thanks for reading. I'm glad you liked the Dean/Harry moment. =D

**luv-blonde-bunny**: Haha. I… don't think I'll be making Harry shove a knife through her face but hey! I guess it'll depend if I'm in a sadistic mood or not when I write that confrontation. Haha. Thanks for reading!

**Mickey**: Ruby will pay… eventually. Haha. =] I'm really happy to hear you love the story so far and thanks for reading!

To all, hopefully this chapter wasn't disappointing and that everyone enjoyed reading it. =] Like I've told some people already, everything is out and by next chapter, everything will be settled. =D And on will go the story to deal with the enemy.

Thanks for reading!


	23. 21

Chapter Twenty-One

"So, you basically lied to us?" _To me? _Dean asked, looking at Harry with hurt and a hint of betrayal lurking in the depths of his hazel-green eyes. Harry bit his bottom lip in uncertainty, wishing that the revelation could've been revealed in any other way but this one. He felt a surge of unadulterated rage towards Uriel and wished that he had done more than nick the angel.

Unable to deny the accusation that was thrown at him, he remained silent; turning his gaze from the two Winchesters to stare down at the floor of the motel instead.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Dean asked when he didn't answer, and Harry didn't need to look at the oldest Winchester to know that the man was trying to push the anguish away; replacing it with the familiar emotion of anger that he relied on to get through the many ordeals he had faced in all his years.

"I…" Harry hesitated in answering, dread pooling in the pit of his stomach just at the thought of spilling everything that he had desperately tried to lock up in the farthest corner of his mind. "I couldn't." And it was true in a sense. He felt if he even talked about the pain, the helplessness, he felt in hell, the walls that he had built to keep the insanity at bay would come crashing down and he wouldn't know where to go from there.

"Couldn't? Or do you mean you didn't want to?" Dean accused and Harry felt himself responding to the anger directed at him; his hackles rising in defense. "What? Was it because you didn't trust us?"

"Trust has nothing to do with this." Harry snapped back. "That's right. I didn't want to tell you. What good would it have done if I told you I remembered? You can't change what has been done."

"You still could've told us, Harry." Sam spoke up at last; his sad puppy dog eyes gazing dolefully at the young wizard. "We could help you." Harry couldn't help it. He let out a bitter laugh; his control on his emotions was shattering and his self control was quickly spiraling out of his grasps.

"You can't help me." He said. "I'm fine."

"You're lying." Dean said and within seconds, he had crossed the room and had taken Harry by the shoulders; making the smaller man look up at him. "Enough with the lies." There was a plea within the oldest hunter's eyes for him to tell them the truth and the last barricade that was keeping his temper in check broke as he shook himself free from Dean's hold.

"What do you want me to tell you?" Harry asked, unconsciously making his magic flare but Dean held steady; letting the waves of magic wash over him. "What could you possibly do once you know what happened in hell? You can't erase the time I spent there. You don't understand-"

"Then help us understand." Sam interrupted. "Harry, you're a part of the family now. You shouldn't hide-"

"You shouldn't say something that you don't intend to follow yourself." Harry cut in, his eyes flashing. Sam had the decency to look ashamed as he lowered his gaze from the wizard's. He was the last person that should be preaching about having no secrets between family.

"But what about me then?" Dean asked, his eyes never wavering from Harry's form. "Were you ever going to tell me?" He turned his attention to Sam as well to address his next question. "Or were you both going to keep me in the dark? It must've been real funny, huh? Playing me for a fool? Because Sam here is out playing with that demon bitch while you-"

"Funny? You think I'd find this funny?" Harry asked incredulously. "I admit I lied, but it wasn't because I thought it would be _amusing_." The accusation hurt more than he would've thought possible.

"Then why couldn't you tell us? Why all the secrets?"

"Because I didn't think you would be able to handle it!" The dam had burst and Harry didn't think he could stop it anymore. "What? Do you want to hear all the shit I've been through? How, for a hundred years, I was tortured in every inconceivable way only to be whole again the next day for it to start all over again?" His eyes were stinging and the sane part of him was horrified to find that he was close to crying.

Taking in the paling faces of the two Winchester brothers, he tried to stop but the words continued to spill out of his mouth.

"Day after day, I was tortured," he repeated, his eyes turning dull as he recalled his time in hell. "I'd be ripped apart, burned, stabbed…" he trailed off and shook his head to clear the fog that was suddenly present in his mind. "For a hundred years." His mind drifted to what Lestrange had told him and he could feel himself sinking down onto the ground. He was suffocating.

He was so out of it that he didn't notice when Dean had knelt down in front of him and had taken him into the man's arms.

"That's enough, Harry." Dean said, his eyes filling with grief. Feeling a presence kneeling down beside him, he lifted his eyes to meet his brother's. Helplessness reflected in both of the Winchester's gaze and tentatively, Sam reached out and laid a hand on Harry's shoulder.

Harry closed his eyes.

"No," he murmured. "For a hundred years, I never gave in but at the very last second," he let out a broken sob. "I gave into the rage and as a result, I broke the seal." He wrapped his arms around him stomach, trying to draw away from Dean's touch but the older man just tightened his grip to prevent him from doing so. "I'm the one who have made the Apocalypse possible. It's all my fault."

"Then I'll be the one to fix it." Dean said, clutching onto his precious bundle in his arms.

"We'll fix it." Sam corrected. "We're in this together." An understanding seemed to have been made between the two brothers and the three sat on the floor together until Harry finally gave into his exhaustion; falling into the world of dreams.

…

Harry woke up around noon to find Sam sitting on the bed beside him, his eyes locked securely onto the research he was doing in front of him. It seemed that the other was not yet aware that he was no longer asleep and he took his time to study Sam's features.

Sam was looking a little ragged along the edges and his body held tenser from what Harry knew instinctively that had nothing to do with the research before him; his mouth set in a light frown.

"If you keep looking like that, your face is gonna stay that way."

"Harry!" Sam said, flinching from surprise to stare down at amused emerald green eyes. Harry slowly sat up, his back against the headboard. An uncomfortable moment of silence descended on them and Harry wondered when it had gotten to such a point where they could no longer draw comfort from the other. Too many events had occurred that had changed them from who they were.

But despite that, he didn't believe that all hope was lost. There had to be a way to fix this. Now if he only knew how.

"Where's Dean?" Harry asked, unable to stand the silence any longer.

"He went to go buy some food. He figured you'd be hungry once you woke up." Was the answer.

"Is he still mad?" Sam hesitated before answering.

"I don't think so." He finally said. "But Harry, were you ever going to tell us?"

"Are you ever going to tell me and Dean what you're doing with Ruby?" Sharp green eyes gazed at the youngest Winchester.

"Dean already knows." Sam said, fumbling a bit with his answer. "She's been teaching me on how to use my psychic powers. She's helping me save people."

"That isn't all she's doing." Harry pointed out, not bothering to phrase it in question form when he already knew the answer.

"I don't know what you're talking about." The other tried to deny and the young wizard bristled in anger.

"Don't lie to me." He hissed. "Don't go around demanding to know answers when you're hiding things as well, Sam. I can sense the darkness within you growing by the day and that darkness links you with that demon bitch. Tell me, if you believe what you're doing is saving people, why are you trying to hide it from Dean and me? If what you're doing rests soundly in your soul, why can't you be upfront about it?"

Sam didn't have an answer to that and so he remained silent, stewing on what the other had said. Harry sighed, his anger ebbing away immediately as it came.

"Have you thought about the consequences?"

"I'm helping people." Sam insisted. "A lot of people are able to live because of my powers. You don't understand."

"I understand that you're deluding yourself into thinking that this is for the greater good. Do you even know what you're doing to yourself?" Harry desperately wished that Sam would open his eyes and _see_.

"I know that I'm turning this curse into a gift."

"You're a fool." Harry said, shaking his head in disbelief at the hunter. "A gift? The very thing your mother tried to protect you from and you're basically throwing her effort back into her face by running straight towards the path she never wanted you to go." Seeing Sam open his mouth to protest or deny such accusations, Harry plowed on; not allowing Sam to get a word in until he had finished getting his point across. "You think I don't understand? I had a piece of my parents' murderer's soul in me for more than sixteen years. I saw through his eyes as he tortured people by the dozens. _That's_ a curse.

I have to live with myself knowing that it is _my_ fault that people have died because of my mistakes." Harry turned to look deep into Sam's eyes. "I don't want you to have to live with such things hanging over your head but the path you're walking on now; I really believe that nothing good will come out of it in the end and I think that somewhere inside you, you know that too."

"Harry, I-" Sam stopped, not knowing how to respond.

"I don't know what you're doing with Ruby, but you have to stop. Every time you leave and come back from being with her, the darkness within you grows and I…" Harry trailed off, unable to finish his sentence. "I'm asking you as a friend and as someone you consider to be a part of your family to stop. You said it yourself, we're in this together and we'll deal with this together. You don't have to handle this alone. You can rely on us."

Sam let out a soft sigh.

"All right." He agreed.

"Not only for me, but for yourself as well." Harry said, trying to make it clear that Sam, himself, had to want to stop meeting with the demon and follow her contaminating soul ways.

"Okay."

"Promise?" A small smile appeared on Sam's face as he nodded, although a small air of uncertainty and reluctance surrounded him.

"Promise."

Harry felt himself smile as well. Realistically, he knew that it wasn't going to be that easy. He also knew that they were probably never going to be the same people they once were before everything came crashing down around them but it was a small step towards reconciling and that was all that mattered. If they could get over this hurdle, Harry believed that they were going to be all right.

Clinging firmly onto that thought, Harry, without further ado, grabbed his pillow and with an accurate swing, he smacked it against the side of Sam's head; sending the taller hunter tumbling off the bed from the force. The serious air was broken and after a stun moment on Sam's part, he snapped out of it before grabbing his own pillow and retaliated.

In seconds, the motel room was filled with war cries as the two embraced their inner child only to stop mid-strike when the motel door swung open to reveal a surprised looking Dean with a big bag of food in his hands. Quickly recovering from the small shock, the oldest Winchester came in and closed the door behind him with a smirk on his face.

"Letting your inner chick out?" He asked them playfully. "Not that I have a problem with it since I always knew Sammy here was prone to embracing his inner chick but it would've definitely been better if it were actually college girls going at it."

Frowning slightly at Dean's last comment, Harry shared a look at Sam before the two came into a quick agreement and launched themselves at Dean with pillows raised.

"H-hey, watch out for the pie!" Dean managed to say before the two tackled him with an intent on making him take back the words he spoke.

Laughing when Dean managed to pin him and ward off another blow from Sam, Harry basked in the moment of peace that they were allowed.

Yes, they were going to be okay but he highly doubted that Dean's pie was.

…

A disturbance in the air woke Harry from his slumber and he slowly extracted himself from Dean's warm embrace to go investigate. He contemplated on waking the older man but then decided against it. Even in sleep, Dean looked exhausted and Harry felt guilty that he was part of the reason on why the other was in such a state. Constant worry and stress was clearly the cause. Laying a light kiss on Dean's forehead, he smiled when the man relaxed and adjusted the blanket that had pooled down around Dean's waistline.

The presence had yet disappeared and Harry narrowed his eyes at the familiar energy that was emitted from their visitor. With one last look at the two Winchesters, he was satisfied to find that they were both still fast asleep before he slipped outside to greet the unwanted guest.

Once outside, Harry melted into the darkness and circled around to catch the other unawares. Masking his presence, he walked silently towards where their visitor was standing and studied her from a distance. He didn't understand what Sam saw that made him place his trust in the figure before him and he frowned.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded, his eyes unknowingly glowing green from his innate magic. To Ruby's credit, aside from her initial start, she appeared calm and relaxed but Harry could see the underlying tension that ran beneath her façade.

"It's really none of your business." She responded, her eyes challenging him.

"It is, actually." Harry replied, his hatred for the demon apparent. "Whatever you've been doing with Sam ends now."

"Sam's a big boy. He can decide for himself." Her eyes held a veiled glint of malicious intent and it fed into his hatred.

"And I'm telling you now. Stay away from Sam."

"Make me."

Without further encouragement, Harry lashed out and landed a punch on the demon's face; sending her stumbling backwards as her head flew to the side. Regaining her composure, she turned her head back towards him; wiping the blood away from the side of her mouth.

"That actually hurt." She said and before he knew it, she dashed towards him. He dodged her fist and blocked a kick that she sent flying towards his direction, responding with his own. Lacing his punch with magic, his fist connected to his intended target; sending her flying backwards and smashing into the brick wall.

He heard her growl in anger. With inhuman speed, she had darted towards him and managed to get a hit in. He flew backwards from the impact and Ruby followed, knocking him down to the ground. He threw out his leg and kicked her knee in, sending her crashing down with a cry on her lips. With no mercy, his foot smashed into her face and a loud crack was heard as he managed to break her nose.

She cried out, whether it was from pain or anger, Harry was unsure nor did he care as he jumped to his feet. She gave him a contemptuous glare and without further notice, she vanished from sight; leaving him alone with possibly a broken jaw. Or the very least, fractured.

"Quite a show you put on." Harry stiffened and he turned around quickly to face the other that he had been unable detect. Even now, the other didn't hold a presence that could be detected and that put him on edge. Gazing at the man before him, he moved into a defensive position. "That's hardly the attitude you should show towards the one who set you free."

"What do you want?" Harry asked.

"I've come to check up on you." Zepar answered, stepping into the light the streetlights provided. "Though I must say, you should've killed the bitch instead of letting her escape."

"And why's that?" He wasn't going to let the demon know that he agreed with what it said.

"One less _filth_ would be running around." There was no doubt in Harry's mind that the demon across from him held Ruby in the lowest esteems.

"Why did you rescue me?" The demon smirked, shrugging.

"I was bored and Death called in a favor." He looked at Harry with amused eyes. "It passed the time and it helped that you're such a cute little thing." The young wizard chose to ignore the last bit the demon said.

"Why would he want to save me?"

"Because you're _his._" Was the answer. "Master of Death. Ring any bells?" Harry frowned. He didn't know whether to be disturbed or not by the claim but he pushed the thought aside, choosing to think about it later. Though he was far from trusting the demon before him, he just had to ask the question that plagued him.

"Tell me, did I really break the first seal?" An emotion too quick for Harry to identify flashed across Zepar's eyes and it made him uneasy.

"I think it would be best if you leave my charge alone." Castiel's voice interrupted, making Harry start violently. Merlin, what is with all these celestial and demonic beings popping out of the blue and scaring the daylights out of him. If Harry didn't know any better, he would've thought they were working a conspiracy against him and trying to give him a heart attack.

Zepar tsked, annoyance coloring his features as his eyes laid on the form of Castiel who had stepped in front of Harry to block him from the demon's sight. Harry bit back the irritation he felt from the angel's actions and tried to move away.

"You Halos are always out ruining the fun in everything." Zepar responded, shoving his hands into the jean pockets he wore. He caught Harry's eye and with a grin, he said, "I'll be seeing you around, Little Master." He vanished as quietly as he had came and Castiel's tense posture relaxed some when the demon was out of sight.

"That demon is very dangerous." He said in his monotonous tone. "You should never let down your guard around him."

"I didn't." Harry said, folding his arms across his chest. He still has yet gotten the answer to his question. He peered at the angel through the fringes of his hair. Surely Castiel would answer his question. "Did I really break the first seal?"

Castiel hesitated for a moment.

"Yes." The answer was like a hammer to the chest and Harry closed his eyes. "We did not think that you were the one that they held their plans for. If we had known, we would've…" The angel trailed off but Harry knew what he wanted to say.

"Prevented it?" He asked wryly. "So what happens now?"

"Not all hope is lost." Castiel said. "What you started, only you will be able to end it."

"And how do I do that exactly?"

"I… am unclear on the details." Harry felt a small bubble of hysteria threatening to escape and he pushed it down.

"Then I guess… I'll just have to wing it." He said, rubbing the scar on his forehead. "As usual."

He was beginning to think Fate had it in for him and he knew somewhere, without a doubt, Trouble was laughing at him as it brewed up more things to throw at him. If he ever met the creature, he was going to borrow Dean's gun and shoot the little bugger.

…

**A/N: **I finally was able to work on this chapter. =D Whoo… it's been a while, huh? I had to go back a couple of chapters because I actually forgot some details. . Horrible but yeh… I got the chapter out. =]

Oh man… so after this chapter, the story will finally move onwards I believe. Confrontations and such is over and done with _for now_.

**hjamesp15**: I'm really happy to hear that. =D As always, thanks for continuing to follow the story and reading!

**luv-blonde-bunny**: Glad you liked the chapter. =] And yeh, I'm trying to make it stick sort of close to the timeline of Supernatural but at the same time, incorporate my own ideas so that it won't be exactly the same as Supernatural. Sam… is so easily led astray and hopefully, he'll snap out of his delusions some time soon. Haha. Thanks for reading!

Along with everyone else. =D

Thanks a bunch for reading! I'll try to update… within the next week. Let's hope I have time. =]


	24. 22

Chapter Twenty-Two

The crowd cheered in awe and amazement as the magician swept his hand across the surface of the glass, confirming that the card was indeed on the other side. He bowed to the crowd, thanking them for their time while in the far back, a bit away from the still applauding crowd, a disgruntled Dean Winchester looked on with an amused Sam and Harry by his side.

"What a joke." Dean said, turning away from the sight. "You'd think people would realize how much of a douchebag he is."

"That's Jeb Dexter." Sam informed his brother and Dean shot him an incredulous look as they walked away from the scene.

"I don't even want to know how you know that." The older Winchester said, shaking his head.

"He's famous, kind of." Sam defended his attained knowledge, a little embarrassed.

"For what? Douche baggery?"

"I thought it was pretty amazing." Harry spoke up from beside Dean, grinning up at the older man when he was given a disbelieving look.

"_You_ found it amazing?" Dean asked, clearing finding something wrong with the statement. Harry nodded; the grin never leaving his face. "How does it make sense that a _wizard_ is amazed of that loser's tricks?" Harry shrugged.

"I've always wanted to see how magicians pulled off their 'magic.' My aunt and uncle were the type of people who didn't like things that were… unnatural to them. Magic just happens to be one of the things that they consider the most freakish and they tried their best to keep it out of their lives." Harry explained, for once in his life not feeling the small pang of sorrow that usually followed at the thought of his family's hatred towards him and magic itself. He figured Hell did that to a person or rather, he peered up at the Winchesters, he had found acceptance elsewhere that held more importance to him.

"Your aunt and uncle thought magic was… freakish?" Sam asked hesitantly and Harry could just see the underlining question flashing through the youngest Winchester's eyes.

"They hated magic." Harry answered simply. "The word 'magic' itself wasn't allowed in the house and they tried to keep everything pertaining to magic as far away from them as possible. I guess muggle magicians fell into the category."

He didn't really need to explain further as Dean and Sam seemed to grasp the meaning hidden within his words. If they hated magic, then Harry, who essentially embodied magic itself, was something that was close to an abomination within the household.

Dean wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders and pulled him close. He didn't know what to say.

"It's been several years since I've seen them." A hundred and some years to be exact but Harry didn't want to bring up his time in Hell at the moment. "I was never close to them anyway and I've gotten over it." The older Winchester tensed a bit from anger.

"They were your family, you shouldn't have to get over it." He said with a scowl. Harry had found out very soon after he had joined the Winchesters that Dean was a man deeply devoted to his family and he was the type that would do anything to ensure of his family, especially Sam's, safety. It was endearing to know that under his gruff and tough hunter image that he tried to portray to the rest of the world, he was actually

"But I have." Harry said, running a soothing hand along the older man's hand. He had forgotten that just because he was no longer affected by his past, didn't mean that others were nearly accepting of it when they first hear about it.

"And besides, we're your family now." Sam said, moving to walk on the other side of the small wizard. Harry smiled.

"Yeah." The slowly darkening mood lifted at his acknowledgement and Dean looked down at him with a grin.

"Well, I say you got yourself a bargain." He said. "With someone as handsome and downright sexy as me. What more could you ask for?" Harry eyed Dean before turning his attention to Sam with a smirk. He playfully checked out the taller Winchester.

"I'm not so sure about that." He replied. "I'd say I got lucky to get a brother that looks like Sam."

"What?" Dean exclaimed before pulling Harry closer to his side while narrowing his eyes at a laughing Sam. He held the small wizard rather possessively even though by now Harry was laughing as well.

Harry let out a gasp of surprise when he found himself lifted and was now being carried caveman style by the older Winchester. He kicked his feet out only for Dean to smack him on his behind, eliciting a bright red blush to spread across his face.

"Settle down or else we won't go after all." This caught Harry's curiosity and he almost forgot about his current position. _Almost_.

"Where are we going?" He asked, pushing aside his plans for revenge for the moment.

"To a magic show." Dean answered, beginning to walk in the general area where all the shows usually were at.

"I thought you hated those types of things?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, well. It might be interesting when we know we got the real deal sitting right next to us."

…

The area filled with smoke as the magician entered onto the stage with a dramatic flair that reminded Harry eerily of Gilderoy Lockhart and how he used to love the fame and adoration showered upon his being. The man was still currently a residence at St. Mungo's, his mind still a mess from his own _Obliviate_ spell. It was a sad fate.

A surge of magic pulsed through the air, interrupting Harry from his thoughts and he stiffened unnoticeably as he glanced around discretely to try to locate the source. The wild magic around him was swirling quite violently and even his own rose up in defense at the foreign energy.

"What's wrong?" Dean asked, having noticed that Harry's attention wasn't on the magician that was 'levitating' his assistant with gestures from his hands. Harry bit his lip as Sam also turned to look at him.

He couldn't tell where it was coming from and he knew, just _knew_, that the result from the foreign magic was not going to be good. Some ex-auror he was if he couldn't locate the source of the magic that was practically permeating the air.

"This magical show might not just be illusions after all." He responded softly, his green eyes sweeping the room for anything out of the ordinary. Dean raised an incredulous brow and looked back at the magician on stage.

"You mean he might actually be-"

"Not him." Harry denied. "It's coming from somewhere else but I don't know where." He said with a tint of frustration in his tone. He had discretely withdrawn his wand, holding it in preparation within the cover of his jacket's sleeve.

The crowd around them cheered and applauded, signaling the end of the man's act as he and his assistant bowed before leaving the stage. After their departure, an elderly man entered onto the stage; his costume designed the way the magician of old used to wear. One could tell that he was a bit nervous or rather, he felt a bit out of his element. The modern world had moved on without him and now he was trying to integrate within the folds once again.

The foreign magic was circling around lazily, making Harry wary but there wasn't anything he could do at the moment. Not without knowing what the intent behind the magic was.

So much for a normal night out.

As the magician began his performance, a rather risky escape trick that ensured certain death if he didn't manage to pull it off, the foreign magic seemed to get jittery in preparation. For what, Harry sincerely wished he knew.

Watching the man strap himself down onto the table, Harry felt some trepidation pool in the pit of his stomach. As the countdown began before the sharp iron fell on top of him, the magic swirled from above and he just knew that it was connected to the man's act.

Uncertain that he was of the situation, Harry instinctively knew that he should _not_ let the iron of certain death fall and just as it was about to fall, he spelled the lights off followed by the levitation charm on the iron of spikes. Instantly the foreign energy dispersed and Harry let out the breath of air he was holding as his magic settled within him and the crowd let out cries of surprise at the sudden darkened room.

"Harry?"

"It's okay, Dean." Harry answered, hearing the slight panic in the other's voice. "It disappeared as soon as I stopped the show."

"Let's get out of here." Sam said on the other side of him and he nodded before realizing that the action wouldn't be seen in the pitch black room. The other spectators were getting restless as well, some in the process of getting up to leave.

"Let's go." Dean said and together, the three of them took their leave. Out in the open air, Harry took a deep breath. Once they were in the familiar Impala, Sam asked the question that had been occupying all of their minds since Harry had sensed the magic.

"You think that it has something to do with that guy's death?" Harry bit his lower lip in thought.

"It's possible." He answered slowly. "The magic there was unnatural. It was like it was waiting for the iron spikes to fall."

"And that same guy apparently performed on the same night Patrick Vance was found dead with the multiple puncture wounds."

"So we got ourselves a suspect?" Dean asked, started to drive off. Harry leaned back against his seat.

"I'd say so."

…

While Dean was off checking on their latest lead and Sam doing further research, Harry had immersed himself into the "magical" scene in hopes of picking up a trail that the foreign magic had left behind. So far he had nothing and wondered if the Winchesters had had any luck in their investigation.

"Looks like you're having a little trouble."

Harry whirled around, refraining from pulling his wand out in front of the dozens of muggles in the area. Then again, if he did, they'd just believe it was a "magic" act. How ironic.

"What are you doing here?"

"You wound me." Zepar said, giving him a mock pitiful look. "Can't I come check up on you now and then?"

"No." Harry answered immediately without any remorse. "Now what are you really doing here?"

"Ah, Little Master," The demon said, pulling a red rose out seemingly out of thin air. "You're such a hard person to charm." He smiled seductively at a woman passing by and she blushed, clearly flattered by his attention. "Well, I just came to tell you that Death is quite interested in this little hunt. He says that this person has been eluding him for some time now and he hopes that you'll be able to put an end to it."

Harry narrowed his emerald green eyes at the demon who seemed to be much more interested in the woman that was eyeing the pair.

"Put an end to it?"

"He's sure that you'll be just as invested in doing so when you discover all the facts." Zepar said. "I think I'll be taking my leave now."

"If you already know all the facts, why don't you tell me?" The demon smirked and leaned close into Harry's face.

"What fun would there be if I did such a thing?" He made to kiss the young wizard but Harry wasn't weak and incapacitated this time around and effectively dodged the other. Zepar chuckled. "You're quite a hard one to win over." With that, he handed Harry the red rose before vanishing.

Some claps sounded around Harry and he suppressed the urge to sigh at the crowd's ignorance. At least it was better than a mass panic.

…

Somehow in some way, Jay the Magician was magically transferring his deaths onto another using tarot cards.

Harry hated to admit it but Zepar, or rather Death, was correct. He was going to become quite invest in this case to put an end to it. If there were two things that he hated most in the world, it was people's thirst for immortality and divination. Combine the two together and it leaves a trail of chaos and misery for everyone it crosses path with.

The young wizard shivered in slight fear. He was glad that Voldemort never had his hands on such information; it would've been devastating.

No, instead it was in the hands of a man who wanted to relive his glory days as a great magician. Harry, who had never thought anything good came from being famous found it bewildering and a bit horrifying that someone would go that far for fame. Granted, he understood that it was rather hard to believe that it was magic that was killing others in his place but _magicians_ should have some sort of belief in magic, shouldn't they?

Obviously not with the way Jay had reacted and had Sam and Dean arrested. Since the only options Harry had was either bail them out and let Jay carry on the show which would undoubtedly kill someone else or stop Jay and then bail the Winchesters out without anyone dying for the night. Harry decided to choose the first option.

He just hoped that the Winchester brothers were able to stay unmolested during their stay in jail.

Watching the man on stage, Harry understood the man's desire to perform. It was the only thing that he had left in the world or at least, that's what he believed. But what Harry could see in the man's eyes was something that he himself had longed for when the war was won.

He wanted death.

Believing that he had nothing else in the world, there was no point of going on living until he was shown the error of his thoughts by Severus.

Turning back to the situation at hand, Jay was performing what he called The Table of Death once more. Harry was beginning to think magicians had a screw loose in the head. The lot was bloody crazy if anyone asked him.

The foreign magic was gathering in the room slowly as Jay was helped into a straight jacket and after some contemplation, he sent out a small sliver of his own magic to probe at the rather dark energy. As soon as it came into contact, Harry nearly flinched at the ancient magic and his magic recoiled before recovering. He had to try to see if he could get a feel of the person wielding such power.

Spotting some movement behind the curtain on stage, Harry narrowed his eyes as he felt an unusual pulse and with acquired stealth, he moved from his spot to head over to the unknown person. Whoever it was, there was no doubt in Harry's mind that they were the one responsible.

Successfully reaching the stage without detection, he slipped behind the curtains. He was nearing the source and with a flick of his wand, he had placed a sticking charm onto the metal of death to prevent it from falling before continuing on. He stuck close to the shadows, masking his footsteps in case it gave him away but it seemed that the other was already aware of him.

"Harry Potter, I presume?" The man spoke up from somewhere to his left and he quickly turned to face him. It was one of Jay's friends, Charlie.

"How'd you know?" He asked, eyeing the man critically.

"How wouldn't I know of the great savior of the Wizarding World?"

"You're a wizard?" The other didn't feel like one despite the magic he seemed to be able to possess.

"Not quite." He smiled at the young wizard before him. "I'm a magician."

The sound of a rope snapping could be heard and the telling signs that the magician before him had undo his spell was revealed as the metal frame with spikes could be heard falling down.

"No!" Harry cried out, whipping his wand out but it was too late. A gasping sound was let out near him and turning around, Charlie had fallen down onto the floor. Dead and stabbed multiple times. He stumbled back in surprise, confused.

It was clearly Charlie who was the one providing the magic that aided Jay in his conquest for achieving back his fame so why had he let himself be killed off? It didn't make sense and Harry was far too pessimistic to believe that it was over this easily. Hearing footsteps coming towards them, he decided to leave then. His thoughts a whirl of perplexity of the situation he suddenly found himself in.

…

Apparently, Harry didn't need to post bail because Jay had dropped the charges he had against the Winchesters. Standing in the police station as he waited for the police officer to fetch them, Harry bit his bottom lip in deep thought. He was brought out of his mind when he heard Dean's teasing voice.

"Aw. Cheer up, Sammy. At least no one made you their Samantha in there." Dean said rather jovially. Harry didn't know whether to sigh or laugh, depend on Dean to still be in a jolly mood after spending some time in jail.

"Shut up, Dean." Sam nearly hissed, irritated. He didn't know why he always was locked up with the weirdos. Dean included at times.

With a stern warning to not harass anyone anymore, the Winchesters were let loose back into the world where Harry filled them in on what had occurred at the magic show.

"So it wasn't Charlie?" Dean asked, his voice conveying the confusion that Harry felt.

"It is. Or was?" Harry sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Everyone has their own unique… feel of magic that can't be replicated."

"But he's dead?"

Harry wasn't quite sure.

"I don't know. This doesn't make sense."

"We only have one major clue left that can hopefully help us make sense of this." Sam said as Harry and Dean looked at him. "We're going to have to go talk to Jay again."

Looking upon the forlorn figure of Jay, Harry couldn't help but feel for the man. He had lost his best friend and if he had only listened and stopped his magic act, Charlie wouldn't have died. Harry wasn't sure what to think.

He knew for a fact that he had not been mistaken when he had identified the foreign magic as Charlie's and the last words that the man had spoken unnerved him.

"_I'm a magician."_

He knew there was more meaning behind it than a mere statement but the knowledge was a bit out of reach. While Dean and Sam questioned Jay, Harry tried to solve the puzzle that Charlie had dangled in front of him before his untimely, or should it be timely, death.

"Harry?" Sam called, placing a hand on his shoulder; jerking him back to reality. "Is something wrong?"

"No." He answered. "Just thinking." The taller Winchester studied him, his hazel-brown eyes holding a tint of concern. "I was just thinking of Charlie's last words." He admitted.

"Maybe they were just famous last words." Sam offered, but he didn't look entirely convinced of his answer.

"I hope so."

And of course, they were wrong. It wasn't famous last words but rather it was famous words of beginning, Harry thought as he looked dazedly at a much younger version of Charlie before him.

Magician, indeed.

Weren't they known for escaping death? Bloody hell, they even center their acts around such a thing and Harry felt like an incredible idiot for not realizing it as the man caught Dean's bullet with his teeth. This was getting ridiculous.

Jay and another one of his friends stood off to the side in awe and amazement, unsure how to process just how his supposed dead friend was young again and _alive_.

Immortality, Charlie had said. He held in his possession a book on immortality. That was also where he had gotten his magic and why it had felt so old. The text was probably created many centuries ago.

"_Incendio_." Harry said, sending the curse flying through the air in hopes of catching the book on fire. Considering the situation and the fact that it was already revealed that magic truly did exist in the world, Harry tossed aside his reservations of not using magic in front of muggles.

Charlie disappeared only to reappear on the other side of the room, sending some ropes flying towards Harry. Casting protego, he remained safe from its grasps but Sam and Dean was far from having the same luck.

"Dean!" Harry cried out in worry, seeing the older hunter fighting with the rope that was forming a noose around his neck. "_Lacero._" Dean gasped for breath as he was freed from the rope and he immediately rushed to help Sam who was now tied down onto the Table of Death.

His relief was short lived as an invisible force smashed into Harry and sent him flying towards the wall, making him bounce off the hard surface rather violently.

"You should really worry about yourself instead of them." Charlie said, an amused smirk on his face. "I've heard many tales about you, Harry Potter and I thought you'd be more of a challenge."

Harry forced himself to stand up, wand in hand. He didn't bother with a retort, his mind running tactics that he could use to take out the man. He let a smile slowly spread across his face.

Magician versus wizard. Just who would come out on top?

It was no contest.

Sending spells head on wasn't going to work so what was left he could do? With a pop that surprised the old turned young Charlie, Harry reappeared behind him and sent the disarming charm towards him as he whirled around.

The spell connected, sending man and book flying apart.

"_Incendio_." Harry casted the second time that night and this time, his spell hit his intended target and the book caught fire.

"No!" Charlie screamed, rushing to recover his book but Sam and Dean had moved to intercept him. With the book going up in flames, Harry could feel the magic slowly dispersing until it completely entered back into the earth and watched in eerie silence along with everyone else as the youthful appearance of Charlie slowly matured until he was old and wizened once more.

Now only ashes, the book was now barren and powerless, just like its owner.

It was over.

…

Several days later, they had gone and talked to Jay once more and to say that the man was living his life in contentment would be a lie. He was still miserable but he wasn't alone per se. He had his friends who were just as miserable and old as he was but it was something, he had said.

Giving Harry his pack of cards, he informed them he had given up the life of a magician and that maybe things wouldn't have gone down the way they did if he had had the will to give it up sooner. He had left them there and eventually they, too, left the bar to leave magic town that wasn't so magical, after all.

It was later that night that Sam sat beside Harry on the stairs, staring down at the pack of cards that he was still holding in his hand.

"Do you think we'll still be hunting when we're sixty?" Sam asked. Harry looked up at him, his eyes taking in the sullen form of the younger Winchester.

"It depends." Harry answered. "Can you see yourself stepping away from this life?" Sam seemed genuinely shocked at the question. He opened his mouth but quickly shut it. He wanted to say yes but something was holding him back.

"I don't know." He finally replied.

"You gotta remember, Sam. As long as there's light, there'll always be darkness." Harry said. "There'll always be evil in the world as well as good. You could live up to be a thousand, and you still won't be able to get rid of all the evil in the world and if anyone has told you otherwise, it's a damn lie." Sam was silent for a while, stewing in his thoughts. Harry rubbed the scar on his forehead, sighing.

"I know that you feel trapped in this world but you should know that you've always got a choice. Maybe you don't think you do or maybe the choices aren't so great, but you _do_ have a choice. And if you don't want to hunt when you get older, I'll make sure that that choice will be possible for you to take."

"Harry…"

"With me and Dean by your side, there's nothing in this world that you won't be able to do." Sam smiled, the sullenness and indecisiveness fading away. For the moment.

"All right."

With that they sat together in silence, drawing comfort and strength from each other. The pack of cards clutched idly in Harry's hand.

…

Crawling into bed with Dean, Harry curled up against the older man as Dean wrapped an arm around his waist. He smiled when he felt the other kiss him on his forehead.

"Thanks." Dean murmured softly against his hair, pulling him closer.

"For what?" Harry asked curiously, peering up at him. As far as he was concerned, he had done nothing to warrant a thank you.

"For talking to Sam." He answered. "For being here with us." Harry smiled. The Winchester brothers were still awkward around each other at times but they truly did care for one another. They still had issues that they all had to work out but the broken fences were slowly mending.

"I'll be here as long as you want me to be."

"Then you're stuck with us forever." Dean replied, kissing Harry on the lips. Sam was asleep on the other bed and for extra insurance, Harry had cast a muffling charm over their bed to keep from waking the youngest Winchester up.

"Hmm… I rather like the sound of that." Harry said, leaning in to get another kiss. Warm hands seemed to travel downwards from his waist and crept into his pants until they were cupping his butt, maneuvering him until he was lying on top of Dean. "We can't. Sam." He said inbetween kisses and moaned softly when the other thrust his hips upwards to rub against him.

"It'll be educational for him if he wakes up." Dean responded with a sly grin but he stopped at the thought of his brother being able to see a Harry in the throes of passion. It was for his eyes only. "We really need to get another room." Harry chuckled before sliding downwards and under the sheets. He teased Dean's erection as he slowly pulled it out from the slit in the older man's boxers.

"We should but for now, I think this will do." Before Dean could prepare himself, a warm heat engulfed his length and he bit back a loud groan as his hands entangled in Harry's hair.

"Yeah, this is pretty good, too." He let out a yelp when Harry pinched his inner thigh, eliciting a snigger from the younger man. He licked along Dean's heat before swallowing the man and within seconds had Dean moaning; lost in a sea of pleasure and passion. "Oh god."

It was much later when they had gotten their release that Dean wrapped his arms around Harry once more.

"So do you still want to see a magic show?" Dean asked since the younger man had yet been able to watch a proper one.

"I've had enough magic shows to last me a lifetime. It'd be great if we could avoid them from now on." Harry replied, snuggling close to Dean's chest. The older Winchester chuckled.

"Good idea."

…

**A/N**: Sighs, so much for updating within a week but before I knew it, I got piled with hw and reading assignments. Now, I gotta prepare for two midterms next week and an essay so… an update for sure isn't going to happen anytime next week but I'll try after I get all that done. =]

The fight scene was short and most likely sucked but I tried.

Kilean: Harry and prophets meeting? Just thinking about it makes me laugh. The world just might turn a little bit colder. =P Thanks for reading!

: Your review really made me want to try to get a chapter out soon. =] I'm truly happy to hear that you're enjoying my story. Thanks for reading!

I want to thank everyone for reading and sticking with the story. =D

Small excerpt from chapter 23:

"_Where's Dean?" Harry demanded, his emerald green eyes practically glowing from his anger. There was a bad feeling in his gut. _

"_Getting us answers." Was Castiel's reply. _

…

"_If you're plan was completely foolproof, then tell me why is Dean in the hospital bed with his rib bones broken and practically near death?" Harry questioned the angel, getting an answer that only frustrated him even more._

"_I don't know. The seal shouldn't have failed."_

…

_Harry snarled at the dark angel, Gryffindor Sword in hand. It was one thing to have a personal vendetta against him but it was another when it involved Dean. The man would pay dearly for having a part in hurting the older Winchester. _

"_I should fear you?" He questioned. The magic crackling around his being. "There's only several things that I'm scared of and believe me when I say this, you aren't one of them." _

…


	25. 23

Chapter Twenty-Three

It was early in the morning and the only occupant in the motel room awake was Harry who was shuffling the cards Charlie gave him while the other two were sound asleep. Harry had woken up with a shuddering gasp of air; his mind still lost within the nightmare that was actually a memory. He barely was able to restrain himself from lashing out to get away from the punishing chains that wanted to sink into his bare skin and sighed in relief when the dream faded away, leaving Harry in bed with Dean by his side.

Hesitantly, he had reached out to Dean and as if sensing his needs even in sleep, Dean had gathered Harry into his strong arms; soothing him. Harry clung onto him, anchoring himself and praying that this moment wasn't the dream. He didn't know if he could take it if all this turned out to be unreal and he was still chained deep within the depths of Hell.

After an hour, he slowly disentangled himself from the safety of Dean's arms and made his way to the lone chair within the room to sit. With the pack of cards in hand, the repetitious motions of shuffling the cards lulled him into a meditative state that cleared all the troubling thoughts from his mind.

So lost within the depths of his meditation, he was surprised when he felt something bump into his foot. Pausing in his shuffling, he peered down to see a similar pair of worried emerald green eyes peering up at him from the floor. If not for its eyes, Harry was doubtful that he would've been able to spot the small creature at all.

Seeing that it caught its wizard's attention, Tribbles gave a small squeak before trying to crawl up Harry's leg. Or rather hop, to be more precise.

A small smile played on his lips as he placed the pack of cards onto the table before picking the hopping pygmy puff up and began to pet it. Tribbles gave a quiet hum of contentment and snuggled into Harry's lap.

It was times like these that Harry was able to let down the mask that he had recently begun to wear, not wanting to worry the Winchester brothers. They were good at hiding their anxieties but Harry could feel their probing glances, checking him over as if to see if he was going to shatter any moment now.

So far, he was pretty sure that he was doing a good job at keeping up his front but if he was truly honest with himself, he wasn't all right in the slightest sense. Nightmares still haunted him in a way that Voldemort never did back during his Hogwarts years and he felt like a part of him was missing or irreversibly broken from the years he spent in Hell. He could try to fool the world but it was getting harder and harder in trying to fool himself.

A snore emerged from Sam's bed and Harry tensed but seconds later relaxed when the taller Winchester remained asleep and rolled over onto his side. Running a hand through his messy locks of hair, Harry sighed and looked at Tribbles.

"Just what am I going to do, Tribbles?"

The only answer he received was a small squeak.

…

"So, what you're trying to tell me is that the people in this town are literally being scared to death?" Dean asked incredulously after Sam finished explaining his theory on what he believed was happening to the town.

"It seems like it." Sam responded, leaning back on their lone chair in the room that they had rented for their stay. Dean and Harry were currently sitting on their bed.

"Well, that's just nutty." The older Winchester said, swiftly snatching a fry from Harry's meal before he could slap the man's hand away. The young wizard sighed in exasperation at Dean's immaturity before feeding Tribbles one. The little pygmy puff ate with a pleased hum, delighted with the attention bestowed upon it.

"And what we need to figure out is _what_ exactly is scaring them." Harry said in contemplation, running a mental list of the possible magical creatures that could be the culprit. He brought a knee up against his chest and rested his chin upon it.

"Whatever it is, we'll find it and kill it." Dean said with confidence and Harry had to smile at the older hunter's predictability at times like these. The solution to most of Dean's problem was to hunt down the creature responsible and extinguish its life from this world. An easy answer but carrying it out was not so easy when they didn't have a clue on what it was.

All the victims had been alone when they had encountered the being and since none of them survived the encounter, there had been no eyewitness accounts on what the thing looked like. No two attacks were in the same area and so, they had to assume the thing was moving about instead of staying put in one place.

Dean crumbled up his wrapper as he stuff the last bit of his burger into his mouth, getting a bit of ketchup on the side of his mouth.

"All right, Sammy. Suit up. We got some families to visit." He said, getting up from the bed. Harry resisted the urge to scowl at the older hunter. After all this time, he was still not allowed to officially go along on the interviews. Looking like a teenager dressed up like an authority figure wasn't going to appeal to the families that they were the real deal without some questions but it still irritated him that he couldn't come along. Granted, he could research other things while he was on his own but it was the principle of the matter. Whatever the principle of the matter was.

Lying onto his back while the Winchester brothers changed, Harry turned his head to unabashedly watch Dean as he slipped out of his pair of jeans to reveal well-developed muscled thighs. He didn't think he'd ever get tired of watching Dean. Or Sam, for that matter, he thought as his eyes slid from Dean's form to the youngest Winchester. Harry jerked in surprise when his eyes were covered by a hand only a couple of seconds later.

"If you keep looking at Sammy like that, I think I might have to punish you." Dean said softly in his ear, his breath tickling Harry. A small playful smile appeared on the young wizard's face as he pulled the hand away from his eyes to stare up at the older man.

"Punishment? You wouldn't hurt me." Harry replied, cupping the back of Dean's head with one of his hands to play with the short strands of hair. He lifted his head up to lick away the ketchup stain, wrinkling his nose at the taste.

"Who said it had to hurt?" Dean asked with a wolfish grin before leaning down to capture Harry's lips. Dean had just slipped his tongue into Harry's mouth when a cough interrupted them, bringing them back to reality and their attention on a somewhat blushing Sam.

"Get a room." He managed to get out but clearing his throat. "On second thought, nevermind. We need to get going, Dean." He said, giving the older Winchester a pointed look.

Groaning softly, Dean stood upright; separating from a red-faced Harry. Harry had forgotten that Sam was in the room when Dean had leant over him in his half-naked state.

"You ruin all the fun, Sammy." The older Winchester said, leaning down to give Harry another kiss before quickly getting dressed. Straightening out his suit, he gathered his keys and wallet. "All right. Let's go, princess. We'll be back soon, Harry."

Waving them off, Harry sighed; letting his hand fall down gently onto the bed when the door closed behind them. Tribbles squeaked from its spot before rolling towards its wizard, humming when Harry began to pet it. After a few minutes had passed, Harry sat up and stretched; getting up from the bed.

"I guess it's time for my own research." He said to Tribbles; changing into something he wouldn't mind getting dirty in. He was going to go visit all the spots the creature had struck and hoped he'd find something useful. Dean and Sam probably weren't going to be happy if they found out that he had gone to investigate the 'hunting' areas alone, but they would just have to deal. He was a grown wizard after all and quite capable of taking care of himself even if there were certain potion professors that would say otherwise.

Penning a brief note, Harry placed it securely on the table and after making sure that Tribbles would be all right by itself, he apparated with a pop to his destination. Within seconds, he reappeared in the sewers and wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Of all places to strike, it would choose one of the most disgusting places you can find in a town." Harry muttered, making his way forward as he carefully tried to not fall into the water running in the center.

Not liking the darkness that clung to the sewers, Harry casted a silent '_lumos_' and directed the small ball of light to float in front of him. Thirty minutes in, he huffed in irritation. There was nothing to be found. He had already gone over the area where the construction worker had died but he wasn't any closer to figuring out what could have possibly scared the man to death.

Deciding that there was nothing left for him to do in the area, he apparated and reappeared in a thankfully empty alleyway. After making sure that he didn't look like he had just spent some time in the town's lovely underground hotel, he stepped out onto the sidewalk as casually as he could while pondering on what they could be potentially facing.

Harry felt as if he should know what type of monster it is; the identity of the creature at the tip of his tongue. There was a niggling in his mind but the answer eluded him; mocking him while dancing at the very edge of his conscience.

The ringing of his cell phone snapped him out of his thoughts and he stared at it with a dumbfounded look on his face while he tried to remember how to answer the contraption.

"Hello?" He answered, unsure if he had pushed the correct button.

"Harry?" Sam's panicked voice floated out from the phone. "Where are you?"

"Just finished checking the sewers." Harry answered, a feeling of dread forming in the bottom of his stomach. Something was wrong. "Why? What's wrong?" There was a brief pause before Sam responded.

"Dean's missing."

Harry felt as if the air was knocked out of him at the admission. The dread was quickly becoming a knot of fear.

"Where are you?"

"Back at the motel."

"I'll be right there." Without much ado, Harry stuffed the phone in his pocket and with a pop, he apparated the third time that day to where he knew a panicking Winchester was waiting. "What happened?" He asked as soon as he reappeared within the motel, startling Sam.

"I don't know. He just vanished."

Harry bit his bottom lip in worry. Sam was getting too worked up and that wouldn't do them any good in the long run. He took a deep breath and tried to clear his mind.

As far as Harry knew, magic wise or not, people did not simply vanish into thin air. Well, not permanently anyway. They always ended _somewhere_. They just need to figure out who could've spirited Dean away and just where they could've taken him. That was simple enough. Not to mention that they also had to track down the monster killing the people in town.

Harry resisted the urge to sigh, rubbing his forehead. If only simple was a vocabulary word that actually liked them. Closing his emerald green eyes for a brief moment, he reopened them with a glint of purpose in them.

"Sam, calm down." He said, manipulating the taller Winchester to take a seat on the bed. "I need you to listen to me." Having the worried puppy dog eyes fixed on him, he tried to wipe the worry away from his own expression. "I'll go search for Dean while you finish up this hunt." Seeing Sam about to protest, he continued on. "I'll be able to cover more ground and you know we still need to kill that monster, we can't leave these people to die either."

Harry knew the internal conflict that was warring within Sam. He wouldn't be satisfied either if he was told that he couldn't go searching for the older Winchester but they had two tasks before them and this was the most efficient solution that Harry could think of. Apparently, so did Sam; since a couple seconds later, he gave a stiff nod. It was clear that he wasn't happy with the situation but he knew that it was the only way.

"Focus on the hunt," Harry said gently. "And I'll do my best to find Dean."

"Yeah, all right." Sam said. "Be careful."

"You, too." Was the response before they went their separate ways.

…

Once Sam had left the motel room, Harry took a deep breath before sending tendrils of his magic outwards in an attempt to see if he could sense the wayward Winchester. Sensing that Dean wasn't in the immediate area, he tried to push his magic out as far as he could without giving into the wild magic keening at him to use it.

It wasn't long until his magic hit a kind of barrier, making it recoil from the power residing behind it before pushing forward once more in an attempt to get past it. Harry himself didn't know how far he had stretched his magic but once he was able to locate Dean, he'd be able to apparate to the man using his magic to direct him.

The barrier gave off a familiar pulse of energy that Harry was slowly beginning to associate with the angels and he frowned. Could it be possible?

"Castiel!" He called out, unsure if the angel would be able to hear him or even appear before him. "Castiel!" A sudden flux of energy was the only warning Harry got before the trench coated angel appeared before.

"Hello, Harry."

"Where's Dean?" Harry asked, not wasting any time. The angel didn't appear ruffled from his lack of greeting.

"He is getting us answers." Was the answer. Harry had a bad feeling in his gut at the admission.

"From where?" Castiel remained silent, so Harry added, "From what?"

"From the demon named Alastair."

Harry felt his insides clenched; memories of the torture the demon put him through cycling through his mind. He repressed a shiver and pushed his own issues aside for now. He had Dean to think about.

"By himself?" He asked, his emerald green eyes practically glowing from anger.

"We have taken precautions to prevent Dean from coming to harm."

_Are you bloody out of your fucking mind?_ Harry wanted to shout but refrained himself.

"Take me to him." He said instead.

"I cannot."

"Why not?"

"No one is to disturb him until we get the answers that we seek." He didn't stop himself from letting out a growl of frustration.

"And is there anyone there to make sure that nothing goes wrong?"

"I have left Uriel there when I came to answer your call." Harry felt as if his heart had come to a stop, feeling faint as he struggled to keep breathing.

"Are you out of your bloody mind?" He asked, his reserves tossed into oblivion. "You left him with that arse of an angel?"

"Uriel can be trusted." Castiel said with a frown.

"With what? I wouldn't put it past him to kick an injured puppy that accidently stumbled onto his path." Before the angel before him could say another word in an attempt to defend his partner, a surge of dark magic manifested and within seconds, the angelic barrier that was in place had shattered.

Harry could feel the unmistakable presence of Alastair now that the barrier had been broken and threw Castiel a dirty look while trying to calm his terror-filled mind.

"Some precaution." He muttered before gathering in his magic and apparating away towards the demon that had been occupying his nightmares ever since he came back.

Appearing in small containment room, he arrived just in time to watch as Alastair threw Dean across the room, the hunter crashing against the brick wall.

"Dean!" Harry cried out, drawing the demon's attention away from the elder Winchester and towards his own person.

"Well, well," Alastair said, looking over Harry with a hunger in his eyes. "If it isn't little Harry Potter. I've missed your presence in Hell. Your screams were always music to my ears."

"_Confringo._" Was Harry's response. The demon before him dodged, a mocking smile still adorning his face.

"Now that wasn't very nice."

"I'm not really in a nice mood." Harry replied, his magic humming around him; waiting for his command. "_Stupefy._" The red spell flew out from his hand and towards his target, surprising Alastair when it followed him and threw him off his feet.

A choking wet cough distracted him and he looked over at Dean to see Castiel leaning over him, attempting to cure him. Turning his attention back to where Alastair laid, he was frustrated to find that the demon had vanished.

'Constant vigilance.' He reminded himself but for now, his main worry was whether Dean was going to be all right or not. Running over, he was able to see that Castiel had managed to cure most of the damage but the Winchester still looked to be worse for wear. He carefully took Dean's hand into his own, worry reflecting from his eyes.

"We need to get him to the hospital." Without a word, Castiel grabbed a hold of Harry and Dean and feeling the foreign energy wash over him, he let it carry him to their destination.

It was a couple of hours later that had Dean stable and settled into a hospital room. He had yet gained consciousness but the doctor assured Harry that he was going to be okay, although he was going to feel some discomfort due to his fractured ribs. After calling Sam to inform the youngest Winchester where they were, Harry took a seat by Dean's bed and kept watch over the man and Tribbles who was tucked in the crook of Dean's neck.

He had gone home for a brief moment to retrieve the small creature and his backpack. He had a few potions that would be able to heal the man faster but they would have to wait until the muggle medicine was flushed out of his system.

A fluttering of wings interrupted the silence that the room was bathed in and Harry turned his green eyes towards the angel. He was thankful that Castiel had healed the majority of the hunter's wounds but he didn't forget that the only reason that Dean had those wounds in the first place was because of the angel.

"What do you want, Castiel?" He asked tiredly.

"I have come to see how Dean is doing." Was the reply. "And to apologize. The seal should not have failed."

"Well, it did. Your plan obviously wasn't foolproof since Dean was practically near death's door." Harry pointed out, keeping his voice low. He didn't want to disturb Dean's healing slumber. "Did you find out what went wrong?"

"Not yet. I am still investigating."

"Well, you should investigate your partner."

"Uriel?"

"Where was he when Dean was being thrown around the room like a ragdoll by Alastair? Or better yet, where was he when the seal was broken?" He could tell that Castiel didn't want to suspect the dark angel but Harry had no such qualms. He didn't trust Uriel from the moment the man opened his mouth. His views were entirely too similar to those of Voldemort's circle for Harry's comfort.

Castiel frowned in contemplation.

"I will continue my investigation and return at a later time."

Harry waved him off and sighed when the angel left. Brushing a hand lightly against the older man's cheek, he allowed his mask to drop; the angst and sorrow he held inside clearly expressed within his emerald green eyes.

"Dean." He murmured softly. Harry wondered what answers Alastair held that the angels wanted and why of all people did they have to use Dean. Placing his elbows on the edge of the bed, Harry covered his face with his hands.

It was a couple of minutes later that he heard footsteps approaching the room and with his mask securely on, he looked up to see a worried Sam at the door.

"How is he?"

"He's going to be okay. The doctor said he just needs some time to heal." Watching Sam collapse into the seat next to him after checking on Dean, Harry noticed that the younger Winchester was looking a bit peaky and he didn't think it was entirely due to Dean's condition.

"Are you all right?"

"Y-yeah," was the unconvincing answer. "What happened?" Taking a deep breath, Harry brought Sam up to date on their situation.

"How was the hunt?" Harry asked once he finished. If it was possible, Sam's face lost the little color it had left before he regained his composure.

"I killed it." He answered grimly.

"What was it?"

"What does it matter now? It's dead." Harry resisted the urge to frown at Sam's evasion from answering the question.

"Sam?" Harry knew now that there was something seriously bothering the Winchester. He reached out to hesitantly touch Sam's arm, making the taller man look at him.

Sam let out a breath of air.

"I'm not sure what it was." He admitted. "I heard a scream and when I ran towards it, I saw this overgrown wolf but when it looked at me, it began to change. It turned into…" He stopped, looking away. Harry recalled his third year then and gripped onto Sam's arm tighter.

"It turned into what you feared the most." Sam turned back to look at him surprise.

"How did you-"

"People in this town were dying from being scared to death. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out." Harry said, leaning back against his seat. "The only creature I can think of that's capable of doing this is a boggart, but since it's moving rather than staying in place, it probably has been in America for a while now." His emerald green eyes regarded Sam with solemn eyes. "It takes on the form of your fear and makes you face it." He hated to think what the boggart might've shown Sam. "Back home, we were taught to defeat it by changing it into something we can laugh about. Apparently the thing that feeds off of fear doesn't like being laughed at."

Sam looked down at that.

"Wh-what if it's something you can't laugh about?" He asked quietly. Harry thought about his own personal fear of dementors.

"Then you find another way to conquer your fears." Feeling something was still off about Sam, he got up and wrapped his arms around the Winchester's shoulders from behind. "Of course, you don't have to do it alone. You have me and Dean afterall."

Sam raised a hand and placed it onto Harry's arm.

"Yeah, I do." He said faintly but Harry couldn't seem to shake away the uneasy feeling he felt slowly growing in the pit of his stomach.

…

It was later when Harry quietly left the hospital room with a slumbering Sam in the hard hospital chair and Dean still unconscious. Biting his lip, he casted a ward around the room to keep the two Winchesters safe and a minor notice-me-not charm to keep any unwanted company out.

Giving a polite nod to a passing nurse, he exited the hospital but before he could apparate away to where Dean had nearly met his death, a hand had clasped onto his shoulder. Startled, he turned around only to see Zepar.

"What do you want now? I'm busy."

"Your words are so cruel, Little Master." The demon said, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulder. He tried to shake it off. "Actually, what I've come to tell you might be very beneficial to you."

"And what is that?" Harry asked, his magic giving a pulse of warning but the taller man didn't seem to pay any mind to it.

"Why, about Alastair and your precious Dean Winchester's role, of course." Seeing that he had caught the wizard's attention, he smiled charmingly. "I'll be happy to tell you if you award me with a kiss first." Harry scowled, escaping from the other's grasp.

"I'll find out on my own, thanks." He said. Zepar sighed.

"Such a hard man to sway." He took a hold of Harry's hand before he could react. A chill went through Harry at the demon's display of speed. "That's what makes you so endearing." Leaning in close so that his lips were just centimeters away from Harry's ear, he whispered. "Keep in mind when you go, Little Master. Supposedly, only an angel is able to kill another angel." With that, Zepar vanished but not before licking the shell of Harry's ear.

Wiping his ear in disgust and confused about Zepar's parting words, Harry apparated away. Upon his arrival, he spotted Castiel eyeing the seal with a somewhat troubled look on his face. The angel didn't seem surprised that he had appeared.

"Someone had tampered with the seal." The celestial being said in lieu of a greeting. Harry walked over to where Castiel was standing in order to have a better look at the broken seal. He wasn't an expert on seals but even it was clear to him that the seal had been purposely damaged.

"You know who did it." It wasn't a question.

"I have my suspicions though I wish they are untrue."

"Then you wouldn't mind standing out of the way while I find out." Harry said, feeling the rage simmering underneath his skin. He was a bit surprised when Castiel gave a nod of consent, albeit reluctantly.

"Very well."

With that said, Castiel took a step back and vanished. Harry was sure that the angel hadn't left but rather had masked his presence, leaving the illusion that the young wizard was alone.

"Would've been nice to tell me how to get the arse here before you disappeared." Harry muttered, positioning himself in an area where he would be able to get the full view of the room. Fingering his wand, he called out, "Uriel! Come and face me, you arrogant son of a bitch!"

An influx of energy was all he had for a warning before the dark angel appeared before him looking as ugly as ever. A sneer adorned the man's face and his eyes reflected the disgust he felt as he stared at the wizard.

"I'd watch what you say, you degenerate." Harry gave him a smirk.

"But it got you here, didn't it?" His magic was slowly pooling out of him and surrounded his entire frame as if it were armor. "What was your plan involving Dean and Alastair?" At that question, a gleam of amusement can be detected from the angel.

"I'm surprised my brother did not tell you." He said mockingly. "Seven angels were killed. We needed the Winchester to find out who."

"And you suspected that Alastair would know?" He asked; Zepar's words echoing through his mind. He was unsure whether to believe the demon or not but he was sure on one thing and that was the angel before him was not his ally.

"We believe that the demons are behind it." His tone oozed with insincerity and Harry's grip tightened on his wand. He decided on a different approach.

"Angels aren't so invincible, after all." He said, smirking at the dark angel. "No wonder you all have such huge superiority complexes. It's to cover up your inferiority."

Uriel snarled in anger, energy gathering in the palm of his hand.

"You dare mock us, filth?"

"Did I strike a nerve? You think you're the most superior but it must hurt your oversized ego to find that you're so easily defeated by demons."

"You know nothing." The dark angel hissed and launched at Harry, a glowing sword in his hands. Harry dodged, angling his body so he wouldn't have his back towards the other. Bypassing his wand, the Gryffindor sword appeared in his hand just in time for him to block the incoming sword.

"I know enough." The wizard responded, parrying an attack coming from the side. He jumped back before launching an attack of his own, his magic reinforcing his strength. "I know that you aren't to be trusted and-," He took a swipe at the other's head only to miss when the other sidestepped the attack. "I know that you're the one who broke the seal that held Alastair." Uriel scoffed, a cruel smirk on his face.

"And what if I did?"

Harry snarled at the dark angel, steadying the Gryffindor sword. It was one thing to have a personal vendetta against him but it was another when it involved Dean. The angel would pay dearly for having a part in hurting the older Winchester.

"Then you'll pay with your life." He wasn't going to let anyone hurt his loved ones. Not again.

Uriel laughed.

"And I suppose you're the one who'll make me pay?" He asked, angling his sword. "Tell me, wizard, how are you going to do that?" He struck out at Harry and threw him back against the wall. "As I see it, you should fear me and grovel at my feet."

Harry growled.

"I should fear _you_?" He questioned. The magic crackling around his being. "There are only several things that I'm scared of and believe me when I say this, you aren't one of them." Gathering his magic, he apparated and appeared behind the angel; managing to catch him off guard.

He slashed at the darker man, catching him in the back. Uriel cried out in rage and pain, turning around and ready to strike. Harry blocked the attack, putting some distance between the two.

"You knew that Alastair wouldn't know who were killing the angels but you went along with the plan anyway." Harry pointed out. "You broke the seal to let him escape. Why?"

"Who are you to demand answers from me, mud monkey?" Uriel said, blood dripping onto the floor from his back. "Humanity disgusts me. Lucifer will be doing us all a favor once he rises and eradicates all the filth in the world." The dark angel had a gleam in his eye that Harry had seen in the many deatheaters he had encountered when they talked about Voldemort.

"Lucifer is powerful, beautiful, and he was punished for defending _us_." There was no question on who Uriel was referring to. "God is gone and he doesn't care what we do."

"So you decided to be the naughty children that you are. For beings that must be millennium years old, you still need daddy to watch over you for you to behave?"

Uriel snarled and attacked with a ferocity that he hadn't before. He sent Harry crashing into another wall and Harry winced in pain. He managed to dodge in time to avoid being skewered but his arm was slashed. Ducking, he kicked out at the other and drew another cut on the angel's body.

He bit his tongue in an attempt from screaming when Uriel stabbed his sword through his shoulder, blood instantly flooding his mouth.

"I should've killed you long before now." Uriel said, twisting his sword in Harry's wound. The injured wizard spat his blood in the other's face.

"You could try." He challenged but before the dark angel could respond, a sword protruded from his body from behind. The malicious smirk on Uriel's face faded into surprise and Harry looked behind the man to see a sorrowful Castiel.

"I'm sorry." He said before yanking the sword upward and out. Uriel's grip on his own sword laxed and throwing his head back, an explosive light erupted from within him. Castiel had covered Harry's eyes just in time to prevent the other from being blinded.

When the light faded, Castiel removed his hand from the smaller man's eyes and Harry could see that the only thing that remained of Uriel was a black imprint on the ground with what appeared to be wings. He stared at it for a while.

"Only an angel could kill another angel, huh?" He murmured. With trembling hands, he reached up and grabbed the hilt of Uriel's sword. Preparing himself, he yanked it out and dropped it onto the ground. The clanging of the sword seemed to bring Castiel out of his thoughts and drew his attention to the injured wizard.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Was Harry's automatic answer from ever since he was in Hogwarts.

"You're injured." The angel said, pointing out the obvious. "I apologize for not stepping in earlier." Harry waved off the apology.

"It's fine."

Castiel placed a hand on his head and immediately he could feel the angel's energy flowing through him; healing the wounds that he had accumulated from his fight with Uriel. Once he was sufficiently healed, he was helped up from the floor.

The Gryffindor sword that was covered with Uriel's blood was beginning to fade away from Harry's hand now that it was no longer needed but before it faded away completely, it gave off a faint glow that failed to draw the young wizard's attention. When the glow died away, the sword was once again clean and gleamed unnaturally before disappearing completely.

"I don't know what to say." Castiel said, allowing Harry to use him a crutch.

"It's not too surprising that you don't." Harry said, leaning tiredly against the other. "It's a lot for anyone to take in." They stood there for a bit, one lost in thought while the other tried to regain his strength. "I need to get back to Dean and Sam."

"I will take you." The angel offered and taking Harry into a firmer grip, they reappeared in Dean's hospital room. Harry got out of Castiel's embrace and approached the bed. The older Winchester was still unconscious and he frowned when he noticed that Sam wasn't there. "I have much to think about. I will return at a later time." Were the angel's words of departure before Harry found himself to be alone.

Thinking that Sam was just out for a food run, Harry gave into the temptation and crawled into the hospital bed to lie next to Dean. The ward and charm were still in place and were set to dispel if the hunter needed some medical assistance.

Carefully tucking himself into the older man's side, he breathed in the scent that was specifically Dean before letting sleep claim him.

…

A/N: So, it took me a while to get around to write up this chapter. I was hoping to finish on Sunday but then I realized I didn't remember some parts of the storyline so I had to go back and read it to get the essential details since I seemed to have misplaced my notebook for this story.

Hmm.. but at least, I got the chapter out. =]

I wanted to thank everyone that have read and continued on reading the story and thanks for the patience. Also, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR REVIEWS =] and I apologize for not responding to them individually.

I put off studying and playing catch up reading for my classes to get this chapter up but I really do appreciate all your reviews and comments. So once again, thank you to all who are following and enjoying my story and for your patience. =]


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